MOSSEL BAY NEWS - There has been some confusion among members of the public regarding the new skateboard bowl at Dias Beach, Mossel Bay.
Some people regard the bowl as a public amenity and have arrived there to skateboard without booking and also expect they will not pay to skateboard, but the bowl is owned and managed by The Surfer Kids NPO.
Book
To book, which is essential for the public to skateboard at the bowl, see: bitcoinekasi. com/skate.
Because The Surfer Kids NPO has a daily programme for 40 children every day, five days a week, the skateboard park cannot always be open for the general public. In a statement, The Surfer Kids NPO co-founder and co-owner Hermann Vivier said it was decided to open the park to the public because otherwise Mossel Bay skateboarders would have been disappointed.
“However, for simple logistical reasons, it can only be opened to the public at times that fit with The Surfer Kids existing daily programme.
"It is unreasonable to expect that the Bitcoin Bowl will be open all day, every day, like a commercial skatepark, because it is not a commercial skatepark.
Public
“For a fee the public can book a skate session at the Bitcoin Bowl.
"This fee and booking system (bitcoinekasi.com/skate) serves a dual purpose. First, it establishes control to ensure safety as a priority and prevent the bowl from becoming overcrowded.
“It is a small facility and can only accommodate a small number of skateboarders simultaneously.
Maintenance
"Second, there are obvious maintenance costs and these costs will increase with the number of skateboarders. It is unreasonable to expect that this facility should be opened to the public free of charge.”
Vivier said other skateparks charged entry fees and many charged hourly rates.
“Our fee is comparable to those hourly rates but it covers an entire day of skateboarding.” The fee of R100 or 5 000 sats covers one skateboarder for an entire day.
Bitcoin satoshis, often called “sats”, are the smallest units of bitcoin (BTC).
Cost of construction
Vivier noted that the cost of construction of the Bitcoin Bowl, without the “bells and whistles like the artwork”, came to about R800 000.
It was funded by a sponsor.
The expected maintenance costs will be R20 000 to R50 000 per year.
“At that rate we do not expect to generate a profit, not with a daily entry fee of R100.”
Bitcoin Ekasi is a subsidiary project of The Surfer Kids. It does fundraising on behalf of The Surfer Kids, pays salaries (in Bitcoin) to all its staff and operates educational programmes on Bitcoin.
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