Exciting plans on the redevelopment of Gailea Momolu Skateboard Park are finally expected to be unveiled this year, five years after LRT construction equipment took over the space.
The park, renamed for local skating hero Gailea Momolu, was approved in 2022. Raised in Ottawa, Momolu grew up using the east-end park. He rose to prominence and moved to the U.S. where he continued to skate, making a name for himself as the first Canadian professional skateboarder and as a pioneer for Black skaters, according to Thrasher magazine.
The name change is just the beginning of the park’s redevelopment. Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney says he has “pressed and gotten commitments on” the imminent redevelopment of the space from the city.
Located off of Ogilvie Road in the parking lot of Earl Armstrong Arena, the skatepark — although still accessible to the public — is in disrepair. Decorated in layers of graffiti, the few concrete structures are chipped and cracking and the rails are rusted.
The gated soccer field behind the skatepark is inhabited by tractors and a mountain of dirt from the adjacent LRT construction. This is where the expansion of the skatepark will take place in 2026.
“It’s going to be a real skate park with lighting. It’s going to be like one of the highlight pieces in the city,” Tierney told Capital Current.
“It’s going to slide back a little further so we can create even bigger bowls — like real skate bowls, concrete poured lines.”
The project is in its early stages. City meetings to propose construction and draw up plans will begin within months. This process will produce detailed illustrations of the new park along with public notifications and consultations. These steps are meant to ensure the city gathers public opinions on the park’s development.
The reopening of the skate park has been delayed by construction of the LRT’s East Line extension, which is 17 months behind schedule. Tierney said he hopes the tendering process ensures a usable structure in 2026, however, it could be pushed to 2027, depending on the pace of LRT expansion.
The plans come as the City of Ottawa has put more emphasis on the development of skate parks across the city, including at François Dupuis District Park and Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Centre in Orléans and Boothfield Park in Riverside South.
The City of Ottawa Draft Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan envisions the development of eight skate parks up to 2031, which will ensure one skatepark for every 42,000 residents in the city.
Over the years, local skateboarders and other users of the Gailea Momolu facility have criticized the state of the skatepark on Google Review and Instagram.
City officials have said they are collaborating with established leaders in the Ottawa skateboard community to ensure the renewed Gailea Momolu Skateboard Park successfully cultivates the space for recreation and community.
