Hale McGranahan Greer Citizen Greer City Council members have rejected the skating ordinance in hopes of coming up with a regulation that is less restrictive. City Administrator Ed Driggers said the new ordinance will take about 60-days for him to rehash to better suit Council.  It will likely apply to the business district of downtown Greer. Police Chief Dan Reynolds said the ordinance stemmed from a number of complaints from downtown merchants concerning the preservation of buildings and sidewalks; protection of city recreational parks also fell under the presented ordinance.  City officials expressed concern over the degree of vandalism that comes with skateboarding.   “You can see damage to public property that is a direct result from skateboarding,” Driggers said. “To me, this is a seasonal issue.  Youths are out of school, and some are spending their time skateboarding,” Councilman Jay Arrowood said.  “We don’t want to penalize many for the actions of a few.” The presented ordinance also mentioned other means of skating, including heelies and rollerblades, which some members of Council questioned. “I also have a concern over the in-line skaters who are exercising…but we should also protect the central business district and parks,” Councilwoman Belle Mercado said. TJ Hunnicutt, 19, was surprised that skateboarding in the downtown area is an issue because of individual complaints, and not as an effort from local law enforcement.   “We were skating behind a building when the cops told us not to skate there because the owner had a problem,” he said.  “He told us to come back later when it was closed.  He understood what we are going through.” Harold Baker is a skater too.  The last thing the owner of Vintage Jewelry wants to do is spoil the fun of a few local teens that use downtown Greer as a makeshift skate park. But, he feels a line must be drawn.  Baker’s Vintage Jewelry shop on Trade Street sits in a building, which was built in 1918.  It now sports a set of brand-new scuffmarks on an outside wall near its the entrance, which he credits to skateboarders. “There is too much liability, skating on the sidewalks, and in the middle of the street.  There are all kinds of places to skate, but not on the road with cards, or historical buildings,” he said. LOOKING FOR SOLUTIONS “Kids will be kids.  I ask Greer Development one thing,” Baker said.  “There are a lot of historical buildings in downtown Greer, find another place for them to skate.” Baker would like to see Greer keep its “Old World charm.”  He hopes if enough people talk about the issue enough it will stop, and adds there are parks in Greenville and Duncan. “It doesn’t make sense to pass something if there is no alternative place to go skate,” Orlando Asson said.  “If they give us a place we can skate, I’m pretty sure everyone would go there.” Asson, 16, acknowledges there are potential alternatives for skateboarders in Greer, which may include traveling to other cities to skate.   “For some people, it is too hard to travel.  We need something local,” he said.  “Skateboarding was born on the streets.  It will help get it off if parks are built.” Hunnicutt wonders why skateboarding has been omitted from city funding, “The city will give money to build football stadiums, and baseball fields.  Why not a skate park?”