Alcover revives skatepark plans, council seeks mayor approval

CEBU, Philippines — The Cebu City Council has formally asked Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival to temporarily utilize the former Sinulog Grand Parade grounds as a venue for skateboarding, BMX, scootering, inline skating, and other extreme sports.

This stemmed from a resolution by Councilor Pastor “Jun” Alcover Jr., who revived a proposal that had lingered for years, the establishment of a skatepark at the South Road Properties (SRP).

The measure, approved by the council during its latest regular session, emphasizes safety, youth engagement, and sports tourism. It also directs coordination with sports groups, youth organizations, and city offices to ensure proper management while awaiting the construction of a permanent facility.

The idea of transforming the SRP into a hub for extreme sports dates back several years.

Then-Vice Mayor Donaldo Hontiveros once eyed the same grounds for a skatepark and youth facility that would attract national interest and support. For a time, the area was used informally, but no measure was adopted to support its permanent use.

Cebu’s skateboarding community, led by Olympian Margielyn Didal, has long advocated for a dedicated space, pointing out that Cebu has produced athletes capable of competing internationally.

Under the current administration, Alcover, upon the instruction of Archival to find a place to build the skatepark, revisited the SRP grounds. Archival, however, later revealed that Vice Mayor Tomas Osmeña was not amenable to the proposed conversion.

The disagreement over the skatepark escalated into broader friction between Alcover and Archival, spilling over into other issues.

Yet the two officials later appeared to reconcile after meeting at a reunion at Abellana National School, where they were seen patching things up.

During Archival’s first State of the City Address last week, he mentioned Alcover’s apparent sponsorship of a night market ordinance, which the latter saw as an opportune moment to revive the skatepark issue.

The SRP grounds had also been eyed for other uses.

Councilors Harry Eran and Nyza Archival had proposed converting the site into pickleball courts but temporarily withdrew their resolution in late June following Alcover’s prodding and questions over land ownership under a joint venture agreement.

With that proposal set aside, Alcover moved forward with his skatepark resolution, which has now gained the support of the rest of the City Council.

Alcover hopes Archival will also lend his approval, completing what he sees as a long-overdue commitment to Cebu’s extreme sports community. — /IHM (FREEMAN)