Top 10: #10 – St. Cloud Skate Plaza

ST. CLOUD -- After years of planning and fundraising, efforts to build a new Skate Plaza in St. Cloud finally came to fruition in 2010. It's the number 10 story in our Top 10 of 2010.

A skateboarder by the name of Austin Lee first approached St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis about the idea about four-and-a-half years ago.  Lee later met with Kleis and layed out a fundraising plan and rough design.

Kleis says from there, the plan went through several hearings before finally getting final approval on a site, funding plan and design.  Kleis says the Skate Plaza probably went through the most extensive public hearing process of any project he can remember.

The $500,000 project was paid for with private donations, park improvement funds and Municipal State Aid.

It opened to the public at Heritage Park in November of this year.

WJON's Abby Faulkner reported on the opening of the skate park with this video piece.