THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 31, 1995 TAG: 9508290121
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 11 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOAN C. STANUS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
Rollerbladers in Norfolk no longer have to fight traffic on busy streets or vie with tennis and basketball players for smooth surfaces on which to skate. Now, they have their own fence-enclosed facility at Tarrallton Park.
It's the first such facility in the region to address the needs of area adults and kids who have become enthusiasts of the booming sport.
``Over the last year, we've seen such a big popularity in rollerblading,'' explained Robyn Knowles, recreation specialist with the city. ``People were using bike trails, the parking lot, the sidewalks and tennis courts - wherever they could find a smooth surface. It just wasn't safe. So we came up with this idea.''
Early last spring, recreation officials closed two of the nine lighted basketball courts in the 70-acre park and converted them into one 90-foot-by-90-foot rollerblade facility. A 6-foot-high fence, costing $4,000, was erected around the asphalted surface to provide skaters with a protected area.
Officials admit they were only able to create a spot for the rollerbladers because Tarrallton has ``plenty of space and lots of existing surfaces.''
``This was the quickest and most inexpensive way to provide these skaters with a much-needed facility,'' said Bob Barbarisi, supervisor of the adjoining recreation center. ``To build one from scratch would have been really expensive. This way, they get a great surface . . . and it didn't cost very much. When they were using the tennis courts and bike trails, it was really messing up the surfaces, and they were running off other people. Now, everybody's happy.''
Barbarisi said that the facility easily holds 50 skaters at a time. Because it's lighted, skaters are able to use it at night. Since May, when the facility first opened, dozens of adult skaters have traveled from Virginia Beach and Chesapeake each week to compete against each other in rollerblade hockey.
Eventually, recreation officials plan to offer outdoor fitness events, aerobic slide classes and dance instruction at the facility. But for now, free skating reigns.
``This is really the perfect place to have it,'' Knowles said. ``Tarrallton is such a popular park because there's so many things here for people to do here.''
If the popularity in rollerblading wanes, ``All we have to do is take down the fence and turn it back into basketball courts,'' Barbarisi pointed out. ``It's really a perfect solution.'' by CNB