Skate over and help out

By Sarah Schwager
CRANBOURNE’S The Shed Skate Park, the largest indoor skate park in the southern hemisphere, is undergoing a number of changes.
After recently undergoing redevelopments, the skate park has also changed management.
New ramps were recently added to the park, which has been running for the past 11 years, increasing the number of jumps and vaults available to visitors.
But soon The Shed will also become home to a performing arts rehearsal centre funded by Casey Council.
New manager Kirralea Ashton said while the new centre would take more than one-fifth of the skate park’s previous space and move the entrance to the park to the side of the building, its operation would stay the same.
But she said the team of 10 volunteers who maintain the park was too few, and she urged locals to consider helping out.
The not-for-profit organisation, run by the Salvation Army, relies on volunteers to help with things like cleaning and maintenance.
“It’s an old warehouse. It can get quite dirty. Considering that half of our volunteers work in maintenance alone, 10 is not many,” Ms Ashton said.
“There’s quite a lot to do.”
The park has also introduced a helmet policy in which all skaters must wear helmets, which Ms Ashton said had been fairly well received.
“We also provide an environment that’s fully supervised and we have first aid on site.”
The park attracts between 150 and 200 people each weekend.
The park’s operating hours are from 5pm to 10pm on Fridays, 11.45am to 4.45pm on Saturdays and 12pm to 5pm on Sundays.
Private functions are offered during the week.
It is located on New Holland Drive in Cranbourne.
Phone: 5996 6811.