CULVER, Ore. — After more than five and a half years of planning, organizing, and overcoming setbacks, the long-awaited Culver skate park officially broke ground on Monday — marking a major milestone for the tight-knit Central Oregon community.

“This moment is incredibly emotional,” said Cindy Dix, a retired first-grade teacher and the lead fundraising volunteer for the project. “With all the delays and disappointments we’ve dealt with over these five and a half years, I can’t even begin to tell you what it means to me to get this project underway.”

The effort to bring a skate park to Culver began with a shared vision between Dix and former Culver student Uriel Mejia. The two first sparked the idea years ago, recognizing the lack of recreational opportunities for local youth. Their grassroots campaign gradually gained traction, evolving into a full-fledged community endeavor.

One of the project’s earliest and most significant financial boosts came from a Bend-based company that donated 2,500 scooters. Community members rallied together, selling the scooters for $50 each and raising $100,000 toward the skate park’s construction.

Additional support came through a memorial fund created in honor of Darlene Urbach, a local grandmother who passed away in 2019. Known for her dedication to her grandchildren, Urbach often drove them to skate parks around the state — a tradition that inspired her family to help bring a permanent facility to Culver.

“This is just going to be a great testament to her,” said her husband, Brett Urbach. “As small as it may be, it’s big to us.”

For many residents, the groundbreaking is more than just the start of a construction project — it’s a symbol of what can happen when a community comes together with purpose and passion.

The skate park is expected to be completed later this year.