Public Square Group is a 501c3 non-profit charity dedicated to supporting skateboarding, art and civics. Our members are volunteers from every corner of Northeast Ohio drawn together to help put something back into the thing that gave us so much.
The Mission
- To utilize skateboarding as a vehicle for connecting generations and promoting the arts, physical fitness, community development, civic engagement and economic development.
- To educate civic leaders, teachers and parents on the positive benefits of skateboarding as it applies to engaging the youth of a community.
- To combat juvenile delinquency and civic apathy by engaging youth with productive activities related to skateboarding such as art and design, music, creative writing, architecture, manufacturing, marketing and urban planning.
- To assist communities and professionals in improving public spaces and parks by providing information and expertise on integrating skateboarding into the public space.
Why Public Square?
Public Square is downtown Cleveland’s public plaza. It serves as a park, event venue, museum and living legend of the spirit of Cleveland.
But it has also been a very fun place to skateboard. It served as the meeting ground for many skaters in northeast Ohio since the 1980s. It is where the east side meets the west side. It served as a galvanizing force for skateboarding in the mid 90s before skateparks and before you got $100 tickets for skating downtown. However, the value of a “public square” for a skateboard scene is immeasurable. Skateboarding has evolved with public architecture going back to it’s roots on the sidewalks of California. Skateboarding brings life to public spaces that sometimes show no signs of life at all. And these places bring their own character and leave their mark on all who skate them.
All skateparks need to meet these basic needs for the skating community in each town. Skateboarding is a free, “public” activity. There are no membership fees, no dues, no rules, no teams. The structure is formed by the skate spot itself and the riders who participate there.