Thirteen-year-old Keegan Schloss has spent the past two years learning to skateboard in Biloxi. When he saw Jackson County’s recently unveiled plans for a permanent skatepark in St. Martin, its size caught him off guard.
“I was shocked. I mean, I expected it to be nice, but, like, not that big,” Keegan said.
The proposed park would cover about 20,000 square feet, potentially making it the largest skatepark in Mississippi. But the county still needs an estimated $2 million to build it.
For Coast skaters, the project would provide something many have spent years asking for — a permanent concrete place to skate.
Years in the making
Matthew Hosey, a project manager for the Jackson County Board of Supervisors, said discussions about building a skatepark in the area began nearly 12 years ago.
The project gained momentum over the past four years. About two years ago, the Gulf Coast Skateparks Association brought temporary wooden ramps to a parking lot in St. Martin for a weekend event. Hosey said the county used information collected there to show supervisors the demand for a permanent park.
The current design process has taken about eight months.
“If it gets built and stays the same size, we would have the biggest one in the state of Mississippi, which we’re very proud of and excited about,” Hosey said.
Hosey said becoming the state’s largest skatepark was not the original goal. The county was already planning a parking lot and pickleball courts, and the available space for the skatepark became clear as officials worked out the rest of the site.
The skatepark would join a recreation complex with soccer fields, a concession stand and a challenge course. Additional playground equipment is also planned.
A permanent place to skate
Long Beach resident Elias Carrillo said the park would offer something different from the Coast’s existing do-it-yourself skate spots.
“It’s all handmade. We all put our love and soul into it, but love and soul doesn’t give you the pop that smooth concrete does,” Carrillo said.
Carrillo regularly skates at the Biloxi DIY park and said he wants the proposed design to include features he has to skate, including a pole jam.
For Gulfport skater Elijah Whipkey, the park would mean fewer trips to Slidell or Mandeville, Louisiana, to skate on concrete.
“It means that it’ll be there, like, I can go there anytime I’d want,” he said.
After seeing a virtual tour of the proposed park, Whipkey said its mix of beginner and advanced features could give younger skaters opportunities he didn’t have growing up.
“Younger generations will have that local park and they’ll be able to grow up with everything. That park literally had everything for everybody,” Whipkey said.
Funding and what comes next
Jackson County does not have construction funding budgeted for the skatepark. Hosey said the county plans to seek state and federal grants and could approach local industries for support.
Construction on nearby pickleball courts is expected to begin in November and take about six months to complete. County officials hope to secure skatepark funding by fall 2027.
For the Gulf Coast Skateparks Association, the project is part of a larger push for free public skateparks across the region.
“It’s just getting these communities to have these free public use parks,” said Andrew Buras, the association’s vice president. “We go around, we just try to bring community together and make this happen for one another.”
Buras, who learned to skate in Gulfport, hopes to see more communities build skateparks and more people take up the sport over the next five to 10 years.
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