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A New Season Brings a New PHAZE for Leeming Skate Park
Published Date: 16 September 2008, 10:42 AM
After a long cold winter the City of Melville is once again getting ready to kick off the latest PHAZE urban art season at Leeming Skate Park.
After three months off during the winter, the skate park will be brought back to life on Sunday, 28 September by local young people who will unleash their creativity on the park, assisted by inspiring Urban Artist Dan Duggan.
Community Development Officer – Youth, Jo McKay said the PHAZE project was a fantastic opportunity and a constructive outlet for aspiring young urban artists. “PHAZE is a unique urban art project which gives young people an opportunity to develop their skills and learn from a professional,” she said. “The project has been met with positive feedback from onlookers of all ages and it has given the young people who are involved a sense of ownership and pride in their community. The project is also a great way for community members to engage with their local young people in an open, friendly environment.”
The project, which occurs on the last Sunday of every month excluding winter, has given participants aged 12 to 24 years an identified space for their art, while giving them an opportunity to work with some exciting and well respected Artists who now make a living through their artwork.
The original PHAZE project took place in May 2007, after local skate park users approached the City of Melville with a 250-signature petition, requesting an identified place for them to create their works of art.
Residents are invited to come down to the Leeming Skate Park, Farrington Road, Leeming, between 10.30am to 4.00pm on the day to watch the team in action.
Young people interested in taking part in PHAZE are urged to book in now or get their names on a waiting list as places fill up quickly. To sign up or for more information, contact Youth Engagement Officer Callum Prior on 9364 0628, email callum.prior@melville.wa.gov.au or visit melvillecity.com.au/youth.
Skate Park
Posted by
Annabel
at
24 September 2008, 08:07 AM
I am 17 years old, I live in Applecross and I am a member of the Youth Advisory Council of Melville. In my area there are no skate parks which in no means has meant that there is no vandalism. Numerous times the bus stops have been graffitied and the glass has been broken and where does the money come from to fix it? the Taxpayers. I know exactly how you feel about graffiti and vandalism but i'm not sure that by taking away or closing a skate park that it will be the magic fix. By taking away something from the youth they are more likely to rebel and find other ways that will annoy us all. A skate park can offer a fantastic place for kids and I wish there was one close to me because I hardly see any youth in my area, i'm not sure where they all go. It would be a great idea to close the park at say 9pm but that costs money to purchase a fence and someone would need to lock it up each night. By locking it up, it might cause even more vandalism by people trying to force their way into the skate park because youth don't like to have restriction. By forcing particular enforcements on youth it backfires as especially teenagers do not like things to be enforced on them as they feel untrusted and feel that they are being unfairly treated and treated like kids which teens do not like to be regarded as. I am interested to know specific acts of anti-social behaviour that these specific kids have done because maybe it has happened because there are kids who have come from different areas to the skate park because they don't have one in their area. If there are kids from a variety of areas maybe there are too many kids at the skate park which is why there are "clashes" or anti social behaviour because maybe the leeming kids feel that the skate park is theirs and that the kids from the other areas shouldn't be there. If you would like to comment back or ask any questions I would be interested to hear from you.
Leeming Resident
Posted by
Jason
at
24 September 2008, 08:07 AM
Perfectly summed up by Jan, The place is currently a haven for anti-social behavior where Police and Security are often forced to babysit these teenagers while they go on their rampages. All that CCTV around the park has had absolutely no effect nor have i heard of any of these youths being picked up as a result of this footage and all the council wants to do is waste our money on more CCTV. How about getting some motivated security officers other then the drones who simply drive in and out everyday and flee as soon as one of the kids answers back, Whats the point of Security when half the officers look borderline unconscious and the officers that do care are unable to do anything because of the poor standards of their back up.
PHAZE project
Posted by
Jessica Aspinall
at
24 September 2008, 03:37 PM
I am a representative of the city of Melville youth advisory committee(YAC). The YAC is primarily focused with youth issues and youth particpation within the city of Melville. We support a number of Melville projects which impact on our youth. The PHAZE project is a very important project to us. Graffiti is a growing problem in not only the City of Melville but in all councils in Western Australia. This project educates the youth and gives them an outlet to graffiti legally. The purpose of the project is NOT for the graffiti artists to get kicks, if you had read the objectives of the project you will observe that our aims are to get the youth to participate under the supervision of a graffiti artist.
In regards to your comments about the skate park, i do not share your opinions. The skate park does not bring any major problems to the area. Before the skate park was built youth were hanging out at the back of Farrigton shops, at Leeming High and in the streets of Leeming causing trouble. I am a Leeming resident and i do live in the surrounding area of the skate park and i have not had to deal with anti-social behaviour that originates from the skate park. The anti-social behaviour i have had to deal with comes from house parties and kids that have no where to go to hang out with their friends. The skate park provides a place for kids to hang out with each other instead of on the streets.
If you have not been noticing the City of Melville has a dedicated security services that runs around the clock. There are a number of security vehicles that do laps around Leeming and that go to the skate park regulary to ensure there is no anti-social behaviour occurring. If you notice anti-social behaviour please do not hesitiate to contact them and it will be dealt with swiftly.
Lastly, in relation to your comment about fencing off the area, the skate park and Peter Ellis Oval are open to the public. Fencing the area off is perhabs a good idea for a privately owned skate park but this is not a practical idea. There are other options to combatting these anti-social behaviours ie the PHAZE project.
The Skate Park in Leeming is an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT asset for the youth. The PHAZE project instills a sense of pride and respect in their community. It illustrates to the youth that we do not make sweeping negative generalisations about them and that we do care about them and their role in our community.
In regards to your comments about the skate park, i do not share your opinions. The skate park does not bring any major problems to the area. Before the skate park was built youth were hanging out at the back of Farrigton shops, at Leeming High and in the streets of Leeming causing trouble. I am a Leeming resident and i do live in the surrounding area of the skate park and i have not had to deal with anti-social behaviour that originates from the skate park. The anti-social behaviour i have had to deal with comes from house parties and kids that have no where to go to hang out with their friends. The skate park provides a place for kids to hang out with each other instead of on the streets.
If you have not been noticing the City of Melville has a dedicated security services that runs around the clock. There are a number of security vehicles that do laps around Leeming and that go to the skate park regulary to ensure there is no anti-social behaviour occurring. If you notice anti-social behaviour please do not hesitiate to contact them and it will be dealt with swiftly.
Lastly, in relation to your comment about fencing off the area, the skate park and Peter Ellis Oval are open to the public. Fencing the area off is perhabs a good idea for a privately owned skate park but this is not a practical idea. There are other options to combatting these anti-social behaviours ie the PHAZE project.
The Skate Park in Leeming is an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT asset for the youth. The PHAZE project instills a sense of pride and respect in their community. It illustrates to the youth that we do not make sweeping negative generalisations about them and that we do care about them and their role in our community.
Response
Posted by
Jo McKay, Community Development Officer - Youth, City of Melville
at
30 September 2008, 03:20 PM
Hi there.
My name is Jo McKay and I am the Community Development Officer - Youth here at the City of Melville. I just wanted to clarify our reasoning and purpose behind the PHAZE project and also acknowledge that we welcome the debate - it really reflects how passionate the community are in relation to thier neighbourhood.
The PHAZE project is a Council endorsed art programme for young people interested in urban art and painting with aerosols. As mentioned in the media release, it came about when two young people presented a 250 signature petition to Council requesting a legal writing wall. After research and discussion, it was decided this wasn't the best option for the precinct so an alternative project was developed in consultation with the young people - this is how PHAZE came about.
The City of Melville's aim with the PHAZE project is primarily to provide a creative, safe and controlled environment for young people to paint using aerosols, and also offer them a unique mentoring opportunity to work with professional Artists who make thier living from running community art projects for young people using the aerosol medium. When PHAZE takes place, we have a City of Melville staff member, Coordinating Artist and Assisting Artist present at all times. All paints are supplied and must be returned in full at the end of the day or participants are unable to attend the next event. Respirators are also provided. The day is extremely well organised and generates a lot of very positive community feedback from both the young and not so young.
It was never our intention the project would stop, or even reduce incidences of illegal graffiti and vandalism in the skate park or Leeming. However, we do notice a definite reduction of illegal graffiti on and around the skatepark when the painting has occurred, which is a positive spin-off from the project .
The Youth Development team believe it is essential to provide a range of activities and events for young people of all backgrounds and interests. Activities like PHAZE provide a fantastic way of linking young people into thier community and we strongly encourage residents to come down and see the project in action, and positively engage with the young people by having a chat with them, the Artists or City of Melville staff in attendance.
I also strongly encourage residents to get involved with the Leeming Residents Group or Leeming Action Committee which are fantastic community groups working in partnership with the City of Melville to build on the assets and strengths which already exist in Leeming. The City of Melville are working on a number of strategies including partnerships with community groups, schools, the Police and other stakeholders to respond to some of the issues in and around the Leeming area but sadly there is no quick solution.
We feel the PHAZE project is a step in the right direction and we welcome all community feedback. If you would like more information on the project or any other Youth Development initiatives, activities and events please don't hesitate to contact me on 9364 0669 or jo.mckay@melville.wa.gov.au
My name is Jo McKay and I am the Community Development Officer - Youth here at the City of Melville. I just wanted to clarify our reasoning and purpose behind the PHAZE project and also acknowledge that we welcome the debate - it really reflects how passionate the community are in relation to thier neighbourhood.
The PHAZE project is a Council endorsed art programme for young people interested in urban art and painting with aerosols. As mentioned in the media release, it came about when two young people presented a 250 signature petition to Council requesting a legal writing wall. After research and discussion, it was decided this wasn't the best option for the precinct so an alternative project was developed in consultation with the young people - this is how PHAZE came about.
The City of Melville's aim with the PHAZE project is primarily to provide a creative, safe and controlled environment for young people to paint using aerosols, and also offer them a unique mentoring opportunity to work with professional Artists who make thier living from running community art projects for young people using the aerosol medium. When PHAZE takes place, we have a City of Melville staff member, Coordinating Artist and Assisting Artist present at all times. All paints are supplied and must be returned in full at the end of the day or participants are unable to attend the next event. Respirators are also provided. The day is extremely well organised and generates a lot of very positive community feedback from both the young and not so young.
It was never our intention the project would stop, or even reduce incidences of illegal graffiti and vandalism in the skate park or Leeming. However, we do notice a definite reduction of illegal graffiti on and around the skatepark when the painting has occurred, which is a positive spin-off from the project .
The Youth Development team believe it is essential to provide a range of activities and events for young people of all backgrounds and interests. Activities like PHAZE provide a fantastic way of linking young people into thier community and we strongly encourage residents to come down and see the project in action, and positively engage with the young people by having a chat with them, the Artists or City of Melville staff in attendance.
I also strongly encourage residents to get involved with the Leeming Residents Group or Leeming Action Committee which are fantastic community groups working in partnership with the City of Melville to build on the assets and strengths which already exist in Leeming. The City of Melville are working on a number of strategies including partnerships with community groups, schools, the Police and other stakeholders to respond to some of the issues in and around the Leeming area but sadly there is no quick solution.
We feel the PHAZE project is a step in the right direction and we welcome all community feedback. If you would like more information on the project or any other Youth Development initiatives, activities and events please don't hesitate to contact me on 9364 0669 or jo.mckay@melville.wa.gov.au
Skate Park
Will this help prevent the constant grafitti that goes on in the surrounding streets? I would like to see the feedback on just who really feels this is a worth while project or is it a feel good for a few "artists".
The local residence were always told if there were problems with the skate park that closing it would be considered.
I know the response will be "a few spoil it for the rest" and that maybe the case however you possibly don't live in the surrounding streets where we have to deal with the anti-social behaviour that the skate park brings.
Come on Melville council put some of our rates into ensuring that we feel safe and don't have to put up with anti-social behaviour. In a perfect world parents should do this but we know this does not happen.
How about looking at completely fencing off the area and having the ability to close it right off from the public at 9pm at night.We have had to endure spot fires,fights,grafitti,litter and broken bottles.Convince me that some art on the skate park will help.
I would like to see how serious you are about replying to my e-mai.You have asked for comments so I would like a response.