JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The City of Fernandina Beach will hold a homecoming parade Friday at 6 p.m. to celebrate Olympic skateboarder Poe Pinson, who placed fifth in the women’s street final at the Paris Olympics.
The 19-year-old secured a spot in Paris with an 11th place finish in the Olympic Qualifiers, which took place in Shanghai and Budapest.
In addition to the parade, Fernandina Beach officials will rename the skate park located in Main Beach Park to “Poe Pinson Skatepark” in honor of Pinson.
According to the Fernandina Observer, there are plans to build a new skate complex at that same location, and last week, the city commission committed $90,000 in the proposed 2024-2025 budget for this project, although additional funding still needs to be cleared as it is expected to cost $1.2 million.
Pinson attended the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee meeting on Aug. 13 to address the committee and share what the skate park means to her and why she thinks it’s important to build a new skate complex.
“Skating has taught me so much, has brought me to so many different places, kept me out of trouble,” Pinson said.
The renaming ceremony will be held at 1:30 p.m. Friday, and the parade will start at 6 p.m. from Central Park and will follow the traditional parade route in Fernandina Beach.