Ortonville- The Village Skate Park opened for the season on Wednesday under new supervision.
Interim Village Manager Larry Brown hired Addison Turk, 24, as the new park monitor and he started work immediately,overseeing several happy kids at the park located at the corner of Ball and Cedar streets.
‘It’s a good job to help out with the community and give the kids a place to play,? said Turk, a Clarkston resident who has worked part-time for the Independence Township Recreation Department for the past eight years as a park ranger and maintenance employee. He has also worked as a high school baseball coach in Kalamazoo and is currently attending Oakland Community College to pursue a degree in secondary education.
As skate park monitor, Turk will be at the park from 4-8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from noon-8 p.m. Saturday. The skate park opens at noon Tuesday through Thursday, but is unsupervised until 4 p.m. because of light use. Turk will be paid $10 per hour to ensure kids at the park follow the rules and display proper behavior.
‘Observing him in his first few minutes on the job, he is connecting with the children and it seems he will be very effective,? said Brown. ‘I’m glad the children have a place to skate.?
The kids at the park were all smiles Wednesday.
‘I’m glad we get to do ramps and have fun,? said James Ball, 10. ‘My favorite sport is skating.?
‘I’ve been waiting all year for this,? said Gary Vaughn, 9. ‘It was hard to wait.?