Skateboarding
Skateboarding
6 best skateparks in New Orleans and Louisiana
While the Louisiana skate scene extends well beyond New Orleans city’s limits, there are a few places we highly recommend you check out when you are there.
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It may not be at the top of your list when you think about skating in a new spot, but New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole, offer skaters a rare opportunity. Unlike the paved sidewalks of cities like Los Angeles and Dallas, New Orleans has far less infrastructure and far fewer skateparks. It forces skaters to be a lot more creative!
They’ve dreamed up events like Terminal Takeover, where an old airport terminal was transformed into a skatepark. Watch the video, because as crazy as it sounds, you’ll see skaters on the rims of the baggage claim! The invites were given to top skate shops around the country and southern talent like Red Bull athlete Jake Wooten.
Participants at Red Bull Terminal Takeover in New Orleans in 2022
© Jonathan Mehring
The Tennessee native is always looking for a new adventure to keep him out of trouble, “There's absolutely nothing I want to do besides skating… If I didn't have something like skateboarding to occupy me, or if I still lived with my parents, then I'd be dead or in jail – there's no doubt about it."
It’s a testament to the talent in Louisiana that the winners of the first Takeover in 2022 were the Ruckus Crew from Baton Rouge, an even smaller city near New Orleans. The small size of the community means that skaters throughout Louisiana and the south are a tight-knit crew who often travel to different cities to skate together.
While the Louisiana skate scene extends well beyond New Orleans city’s limits, there are a few places we highly recommend you check out when you are there, and a few places outside the city we thought worthy of a mention.
The 2 Best Skateparks in New Orleans
01
Parasite DIY Skatepark
Parasite is a unique testament to the strength and perseverance of the New Orleans skateboarding community. Faced with a severe lack of skateparks, the local skaters got together and built one themselves. First opened in 2010, it was demolished by the city in 2012. But the skaters didn’t give up. Within a few weeks they found a more isolated area, under an overpass, to restart construction. In 2013, Parasite was finally recognized by the city and became New Orleans’ first public skatepark. The size and quality of the park is impressive, especially since it is a DIY. The concrete is smooth and there is a large bowl as well as a halfpipe, quarter pipes, vert quarters, rails, ledges, stairs, banks, and more.
Location & Access:
1066 Pleasure St., New Orleans, LA. Open 24/7
02
Gridline Concrete Skate Park at Sidney D. Torres Memorial Park
This is a professionally built skatepark on the outskirts of New Orleans. Unveiled in 2018, this skatepark measures 7,500 square feet. It was built by the world-renowned skatepark design and construction team at Grindline Skateparks. It’s the first of its kind in the area. It is fully made of poured concrete and has an eight-foot, two-level bowl as well as a street course. The street course features ledges, handrails, stair sets, a-frames, quarter pipes, and a mini ramp.
Location & Access:
8201 Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette, LA. Open seven days a week from 8 am to sunset.
The Top 4 Skateparks in Louisiana
03
Hammond Dreamland Skatepark
The Hammond Rec Center operates this large, pool-style skatepark with mainly transition features and a few ledges and rails. There is a large pool with an island in the center surrounded by small clamshells for multi-level tricks. There is also a small no-coping area with a half bowl set off to the side for beginners. Although the ground is a bit bumpy, public parks of this size and quality are rare in Louisiana, which makes it a magnet for talented skateboarders in the area. And the best part is no bikes or scooters are allowed, which is a skateboarder’s dream, especially in this style of park.
Location & Access:
In Zemurray Park at the corner of W Coleman Ave and S Oak St, Hammond, LA. Open from dawn to dusk every day.
04
Fireman’s Skatepark
Fireman’s Skatepark, also known as Houma skatepark, is a sprawling, professionally built skatepark in Houma, LA. Built in 2015, it has a full street course as well as a bowl and quarter pipes. There is also a small beginner-friendly area with some more approachable features for those just starting out.
Location & Access:
161 Library Drive, Houma, LA. Open Tuesday to Friday, 2 pm to 7 pm.
05
Stoner Avenue Skate Plaza
Stoner Avenue Skate Plaza is a street-style skatepark in Shreveport, LA. It first opened in 2006 and was designed under the direct guidance of legendary skateboarder and television personality Rob Dyrdek. The park was then renovated in 2011 to include even more street features. Whatever type of rail, ledge, or stairs you are looking for, this park has it. Just don’t come if you’re looking to skate any transition features.
Location & Access:
E Stoner Ave, Shreveport, LA. Open 24/7.
06
Perkins Road Community Skatepark
Perkins Road Community Skatepark is a massive 30,000 square foot facility in Baton Rouge, LA. It was designed by California Skateparks and you can see the West Coast influence in the big swimming pool-style bowl complete with tiled pool coping. There’s also a flow section of transition and a full street course with all the works–ledges, handrails, manny pads, A-Frames, and more.
Location & Access:
7122 Perkins Rd, Baton Rouge, LA. Open Sunday to Thursday from 6am to 10pm and Friday to Saturday from 6am to 12am.
Conclusion
When there’s a lack of designated skate space in a state like Louisiana, skaters are always ready to get creative and pitch in, whether it’s Ryan Sheckler donating funds directly to skateparks like Parasite, or outrageous events like Red Bull’s Terminal Takeover. Ingenious skaters from the south also gave us the Mississippi Grind, a series of contests held on a 195-foot skatepark barge that floated down the Mississippi River from St. Paul to New Orleans, with contests at every port city to raise funds for other skateparks. The takeaway is that skaters will always find a way, and New Orleans is a shining example.
