There are an estimated 4,000 skateboarders in West Seattle yet there are no skate parks here.

The paucity of skate parks isn't confined to West Seattle. There are only two public skate parks in all of Seattle. That's the same number of lawn bowling courts the city provides.

Realizing there are an estimated 20,000 skateboard enthusiasts throughout the city, Seattle city officials assembled a task force to come up with a plan to provide skate parks in every geographical region of town.

Skate parks are a Northwest thing anyway. The first skate park opened in 1977 in Vancouver, B.C. Meanwhile Portland is the only city in America with a municipal system of skate parks.

Now Seattle aims to become the next Northwestern city to provide skate parks to its citizens.

About 30 people, a third of whom were teenage or younger, met with the task force June 15 at the Southwest Community Center to learn more about the plan and to suggest potential skate park locations in West Seattle.

The city provided money to do a citywide skate park plan but none to build anything yet, said Susanne Friedman, project manager. Early estimates indicate it costs $25 to $35 per square foot to build a skate park.

Contracts for all city-owned skate parks would be put out to bid for construction by private contractors.

The Citywide Skatepark Task Force put together a general plan that includes building three different sizes of skate parks.

The advisory group also is working on a list of criteria to help guide site selection as well as design of skate parks.

The biggest skate park would be a regional facility of 30,000 square feet or larger. For perspective, a Little League baseball field measures about 39,000 square feet. It would be equipped with all kinds of skateable terrain and be large enough to handle up to 300 "grinders" at a time. It also could accommodate BMX bicycle riders and climbers.

There might also be concessions and night lighting at the regional skate park. Access to parking and room for future expansion would be important too.

Seattle would have just one regional facility.

Four smaller "district" skate parks would be built in different sections of the city. They would measure 10,000 to 30,000 square feet. (Three tennis courts cover about 22,000 square feet.) These parks would have room for up to 20 skateboarders.

Like the regional facility, district skate parks could have lighting, access to parking and would need room to grow.

Skate parks also would have observation areas where spectators could watch the action.

West Seattle could be a candidate for a district skate park or even the regional facility, said Jelani Jackson, a member of the Skatepark Advisory Task Force. Ideally the regional skate park would be somewhat centralized. However real estate is too pricey downtown so the regional skate park could end up somewhere south of downtown, he said.

Smaller than a regional or district park would be eight "skatespots" integrated into existing parks around town. Skatespots would measure from 1,500 to 10,000 square feet. By comparison, one tennis court takes up about 7,300 square feet.

Skatespots would be designed around one basic skill of skateboarding and have room for about 13 riders at a time.

The regional and district skate parks as well as skatespots probably would be built in existing or new city parks. Otherwise they would be built near or on other public facilities owned by the city, the Port of Seattle or other public entities.

Some people at the meeting asked if the grounds around closed schools could be included. Project manager Susanne Friedman urged this is the time to put all skate park location ideas on the table for discussion.

The smallest skateboard designation is a "skatedot." These are small, skateable parts of Seattle's streetscape that skateboarders already use or skated in the past. There could be hundreds of skatedots throughout the city.

Today Seattle skateboarders use Ballard Commons Park, a new 1.4-acre skate park near the new Ballard branch of the Seattle Public Library. Senior citizens enjoy going to the skate park to watch the tricks skateboarders do.

There's a larger skate park by Seattle Center, at Republican Street and Fifth Avenue North. It was built in 2000 but is closing because it is on private land that will soon be the new headquarters of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the largest philanthropic organization in the world.

A young skateboarder at the Southwest Community Center meeting asked why a new skate park won't be built before they demolish the existing one near Seattle Center.

The River City skate park is taking shape in South Park. It will be located on South Cloverdale Street near the new South Park branch of the Seattle Public Library now under construction. A drainage system is being installed this summer and construction of the skate features is scheduled for next winter. Meanwhile fund-raising for the new skate park continues.

New skate parks are currently planned at Jefferson Park, Lower Woodland Park and in northeastern Seattle.

People at the June 15 meeting wrote suggestions for places in West Seattle to build skate parks. Among the recommendations were Alaska Street between 46th and 47th avenues southwest; Alaska Street at 42nd Avenue; California Avenue and Charlestown Street (the former Schuck's Auto Supply); Genesee Hill School (now Pathfinder K-8 School); Hiawatha Playfield; Bar-S Playfield; Alki Beach; Harbor Avenue; Jack Block Park; West Seattle Stadium; Delridge Community Center; Roxhill Park and Lincoln Park.

Skate parks have gotten a bum rap, said Laura Weigel, who conducted the June 15 meeting. Despite the belief of many, skate parks don't breed crime, she said. Crime records show drinking and drug abuse are not problems in skate parks, she said.

Skate parks generate as much noise as a basketball court, she said. Wheel noise is greatly reduced by the smooth finish of the concrete in a skate bowl.

The injury rate is lower than for basketball or bicycling, Weigel said.

Graffiti is an acknowledged problem. Diligent paintouts are one solution. Another is a graffiti wall, where sprayers can direct their paint.

The skate park task force plans to issue its list of recommended locations near the end of summer. More meetings will be held after that to get more public comment. Additional revisions will be made and a master plan will eventually emerge. The master plan is scheduled to go before the Seattle City Council next January or February.

Once a master plan is set, neighborhood organizations could provide important political and fund-raising support for skate parks proposed in their areas, Weigel said.

People are invited to e-mail their ideas about the citywide skate park plan to Susan.Friedman@seattle.gov by June 30.

Tim St. Clair can be contacted at tstclair@robinsonnews.com or 932-0300.