LEWISTON – A fall groundbreaking might be out of reach for a new downtown skate park.

“Especially for the kids, we’d really love to see something begin happening this fall,” said Mike Grimmer, a member of the Skate Lewiston Auburn Movement.

The group had hoped to break ground on Sept. 6.

“We have to balance expectations with what’s possible,” Grimmer said. “If everything goes our way, we’ll break ground this fall. If not, we’ll have to start next spring.”

Designs show a skate park on 12,000 square feet of seamless concrete along Park Street and north of the swimming pool. The southern third of the park would have a 9-foot-deep, canyon-like bowl, with steep walls for skaters to maneuver around. The rest features street-like obstacles – rails, curbs, ramps, benches, ledges and pyramids.

Grimmer said engineers still have to complete plans for the park. That includes a drainage study.

“We’re replacing 12,000 square feet of grass with a hard surface,” he said. “The city wants to make sure that rain running off of that doesn’t overwhelm the city’s sewer system.”

The project will cost about $275,000 to build, Grimmer said. The work should take about four months to complete.