On Oct. 27, the James City County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously for a $1.5 million contract to build the Warhill Skatepark, as the Daily Press reported. That vote settles the question skaters around here have been asking for a year. Their new park is coming.
It doesn't settle the calendar, though. Completion is now estimated for the spring. A year ago the plan said late 2026. The park also grew between the first sketch and the final contract, and the county has had no public skatepark since October 2025. Put those together and you get a second cold season where skating means a drive to Newport News, Hampton or Gloucester.
What the board signed off on
Spohn Ranch Skateparks, a California firm that specializes in skateparks, will build it at the Warhill Sports Complex off Stadium Road. The county's skatepark FAQ places it next to the complex's basketball and fitness court. A county listing gives the complex address as 4900 Stadium Drive.
Here's the short version of what's planned:
- Size: nearly 18,000 square feet
- Who it's for: "all-wheels," meaning skateboarders, BMX riders and rollerbladers, of all ages, according to Alister Perkinson, the county's assistant parks and recreation director
- Extras: an accessible entry, a viewing area and walking paths, according to earlier Daily Press reporting that quoted county parks administrator Jerrod Hurr
- Construction start: November or December
- Completion: sometime in the spring
That Oct. 5 story put the opening at May 2027, which fits the "spring" estimate Perkinson gave after the vote. Either way, it's a forecast. Perkinson put the construction start in November or December.
A bigger park than the one sketched last fall
The project dates to 2021, when residents asked for an expanded skatepark during the county's parks master plan update. Funding came through the fiscal year 2025 capital improvement budget. Here's how the plan has changed over the past year:
| When | Planned size | Expected opening |
|---|---|---|
| October 2025 draft | About 15,000 sq ft | By late 2026 |
| Oct. 5, 2026 report | 17,600 sq ft | May 2027 |
| Oct. 27, 2026 approval | Nearly 18,000 sq ft | Spring |
The price held steady at $1.5 million the whole way. The October 2025 Daily Press story gave that same figure for design and construction combined.
For comparison, the old park at the James City County Recreation Center was a 10,000-square-foot bowl. The Warhill park will be close to double that. The trade-off is time. The finish line moved from late 2026 into 2027, so the gap without a county park now stretches past a full year.
Why the old bowl can't fill the gap
The Longhill Road park is gone for good. It was built in 2001 at the Recreation Center, 5301 Longhill Road, and ran for more than 20 years. The county's FAQ says it closed permanently on Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, to make way for site work on the consolidated James City County Government Center.
That land now belongs to the Government Center project. Even before it closed, the county had stopped trying to keep the aging bowl going and put its effort into a new park, according to the Daily Press.
If you're heading to the Recreation Center for something else this month, note that it closes for annual maintenance Nov. 16 through 22, per a county announcement posted Oct. 30.
The people who shaped what's going in at Warhill
County parks staff worked with Spohn Ranch, the engineering firm Kimley-Horn and Associates, community members and the Triangle Skateboard Alliance, a local nonprofit. The Alliance describes itself as a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to build and improve skateparks around the Historic Triangle and encourage service within skateboarding. It has brought skateboarding programs to the county since 2018.
Some of that programming has run through county parks. In 2024, county listings included a weeklong Alliance skate camp for ages 6 to 15, with beginner and advanced instruction, ramp-building, park care and skate art. There was also a "Ramp Camp" where kids built and painted portable ramps.
The county held public design workshops on Sept. 4 and Oct. 9, 2025, plus an online survey. About 50 people came to each workshop: parents of elementary-age kids, teenagers, William & Mary students and skaters who've been riding for decades. County park planner Suzanne Yeates told the Daily Press:
"It was really cool, seeing multigenerational folks out there, skaters and people who have an interest in this, looking at the designs and (getting) really excited about it."
That mix of ages helps explain the Warhill choice. Yeates said the sports complex was picked because so many sports already share the site. Hurr described the goal to the Daily Press as "a park with inclusivity at the forefront."
Where to ride between now and spring
Until Warhill opens, the closest public parks are across city and county lines. These are the regional options named in recent local coverage and on city and county park pages:
| Park | Where | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Riverview Farm Park skatepark | 100 City Farm Road, Newport News | 3,100 sq ft modular park; city page lists sunrise to sunset hours and requires helmets |
| Westgate Indoor Skatepark | Newport News | Indoor option, which helps on cold or wet days |
| Woodland Skateboard Park | Hampton | Outdoor city park used by skateboarders, bikers and inline skaters; see Hampton's facility page |
| Brown Park | 7461 Foster Road, Gloucester | County rules strongly recommend helmets and pads and require adult supervision for children under 13 |
| Bennett's Creek Park | Suffolk | Named by Peninsula skaters as a regular spot |
The Newport News skatepark page dates from 2022, so check current hours before you load up the car. Daylight is short in November and December, and a park that closes at sunset is done well before dinner.
For riders on the north side of the county, Riverview Farm and Westgate in Newport News are the most direct trips down the Peninsula. Woodland in Hampton is farther along the same route. Brown Park is the pick if you're already headed across the York River toward Gloucester.
York County's park is still just an idea
Families in the Lackey area of York County may be wondering whether something closer is coming. Not yet. In September, York County's parks and recreation manager, Ben Whitener, mentioned a "possible" skatepark as a future phase of renovations at Charles Brown Park on Route 238. The Daily Press reported that the county had not voted on, designed, priced or funded it.
The splash pad, two pickleball courts and group shelter at Charles Brown Park are already approved. A skatepark there would replace an existing baseball field. "At this point it is simply an idea," Whitener told the paper, adding that a next phase could happen "soon, or a few years out."
That leaves Warhill as the next public skatepark scheduled to open anywhere in the Historic Triangle. The county keeps updates on its Warhill Skatepark project page.
If you've got a skater at home and you're wondering which James City County neighborhoods put Warhill within an easy bike ride, I'm happy to pull up a map and talk it through with you. Reach out to Angie Archibald anytime. Let's make your big move, whether that's starting your search or getting a free home valuation.
