PERRY HARVEY, SR., PARK SKATEBOARD BOWL

Under Mayor William Poe’s direction, the Perry Harvey, Sr., Park Skateboard Bowl opened in 1979 as part of a recreational park for the Central Park Village community. As Florida’s first municipal ride-at-your-own-risk skateboard facility, it offered the public a free opportunity to experience the emerging sport of skateboarding. Built on city planner Joel Jackson’s original idea, it was designed in the sport’s early “surf-style” and featured a “snake run” down into a bowl where skaters were tested by a series of large humps called “moguls.” Often called the “Bro Bowl,” a reflection of its diverse urban setting, it was revered by area skaters, drew riders globally, and was popularized in mass media with a documentary and popular video game. In 2013, it became the first skateboarding structure listed in the National Register of Historic Places because of its role in the sport’s development, influence on skate culture, and architectural significance as one of the last remaining “Golden Age” skate parks. Before being demolished in 2015 as part of the area’s redevelopment, the original bowl was scanned using laser imaging technology so a near identical copy could be replicated within the park’s expanded skate facility.