| Peter Mathews Memorial Skate Garden | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Skatepark |
| Location | St. Louis |
| Coordinates | 38°35′18″N90°15′54″W / 38.588271°N 90.265055°W |
| Area | 14,000 sq ft |
| Open | All year |
| Terrain | Concrete |
| Public transit access |  MetroBus |
Peter Mathews Memorial Skate Garden is St. Louis' first legal outdoor public skate park. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
The Peter Mathews Memorial Skate Garden is built on a Brownfield site of a Bevo Mill former gas station, auto repair, and radiator service station that ceased operating in 1988. [7] Since 1999, the City of Saint Louis has owned the 14,000-square-foot property through the Land Reutilization Authority. [7] Cleanup of the lot began in 2003. [7] Impressed by how they maintained their DIY skatepark, the City of Saint Louis rented the current site of the Peter Mathews Memorial Skate Garden to the KHVT. [8]
A group of local skaters between 2009 and 2015 built the Kinghighway D.I.Y. skatespot under the South Kinghshighway viaduct. [8] When the elevated roadway was demolished in July 2015, St. Louis was left with no free public skateparks. [8] The group organized themselves into a non-profit the Kingshighway Vigilante Transitions (KHVT) and petitioned the city for a space to build the first free-to-the-public, legal skate park in the City of St. Louis. [8] [9]
The skate garden was named for Peter Mathews, a local skater who died tragically in a car crash. [10]