Waterloo Skatepark (aka Riverside Skatepark)
The Waterloo Skatepark, also known as Riverside Skatepark, is an 8,500-square-foot outdoor concrete skatepark in Waterloo, Iowa that first opened in 2020. The park was designed and constructed by the Spohn Ranch team to replace the flooded and destroyed wooden ramp skatepark that was previously located at Exchange park.
The all-new concrete skatepark was moved into a new location and built behind a levy system to help reduce the number of future floodings at the Riverside Skatepark.
Skatepark Details
| Location | Waterloo, Iowa |
| Address | Touchae Park 601-999 Park Road Waterloo, Iowa 50703 |
| Coordinates | 42.50703, -92.34789 |
| Features | Quarterpipe, London gap, roll in, manual pad, mini ramp, hubbas, ledges, banks, stairs, handrails, flat rails, stairs, corners, and a fun box. |
| Size | 8,500 square feet |
| Riding Allowed | Skateboards, in-line skates, BMX bikes, scooters, and sport wheelchairs. |
| Construction | Concrete and shotcrete |
| Hours | Sunrise until Sunset |
| Lights | No |
| Fence | No |
| Fee | No cost |
| Phone | Waterloo Leisure Services(319) 291-4370 |
| Opened | 2020 |
| Design/Build | Spohn Ranch Skateparks |
Waterloo Skatepark Overview
One of the main highlights of Waterloo Skatepark, also known as Riverside Skatepark, is the mini-ramp located at the base of the park. The mini-ramp brings skaters from all over the Waterloo and surrounding areas looking to shred the mini-ramp to grind the coping, catch some air, and practice their hand plants and board stalls. The mini-ramp also seems to be a place where skaters can teach each other new tricks and meet new people with similar interests.
Next to the mini-ramp is a nice long runway that leads to a manual pad that drops into a roll-in. Build up some momentum, kick-flip onto the manual pad, ride that nose manual for as long as possible, and then drop in onto the roll-in and immediately skate up to a funbox with an upper ledge and a lower manual pad adjacent to the funbox.
On the other side of the mini-ramp at the base of the park is a large quarterpipe that skaters love to drop in on before approaching the five-stair. On the left side of the five stair is a nice grindable handrail. On the right side is a hubba where skaters love to bust out their nose and tail slides. Hit the hubba, the handrail, or simply go for a solid heel-flip down the stair set.
In addition to the mini-ramp, funbox, and stair set there are multiple other flat rails, ledges, banks, and other street elements that skaters can hit as they skate from one end of the park to the other.
The total cost of the Riverside Skatepark was approximately $359,000. It took roughly four years of planning and fundraising and several grants from the Black Hawk Gaming Association and the Otto Schoitz Foundation to raise the funds needed to relocate and update the old skatepark with a brand new state-of-the-art Spohn Ranch commissioned skate facility.
The park is open from sunrise to sunset starting in the spring and ending in the fall. Unfortunately, the winters in Waterloo, Iowa can be quite harsh and not suitable for winter skating.
