Business Monday: Oasis Skateshop hits 9 years as a hub for Hilo skaters

Oasis Skateshop lives up to its name, providing Hilo skaters a place to meet and gather as the long-awaited Hilo Skatepark gets closer to reality.

Dan Madsen opened his shop in 2010, initially operating out of a small 10 x 10 room inside a gift shop run by a friend’s mother in downtown Hilo. He sold his own custom skateboard decks, wheels and other skate accessories.

“I was trying to start a little brand doing artwork for skateboard decks and worked with several people who would talk about how there was not really a local skate shop in town,” Madsen said. “When my buddy said his mom had space, I felt the urge to start something there and pulled the trigger not knowing what it would entail.”

Oasis Skateshop grew slowly over time and six years later, Madsen moved to a space about four times as large at 215 Hualani Street in Hilo where he now sells the signature colorful skateboard decks, wheels, bearings and merchandise such as shoes, T-shirts and hats.

And what makes the shop stand out: a mini ramp. It’s 3-feet tall and 20-feet wide.

“As soon as we rented this space, I started to build this ramp in the back room,” Madsen said. “It was something I wanted for rainy days and so it could be a go-to spot for people to practice.

He said it is user-friendly for little kids and beginners, “but advanced skaters can also get technical with it.”

By building the ramp, Oasis became a hub for the skate community in Hilo, drawing skaters young, old, new and experienced to practice somewhere safe.

“The skate shop is kind of a proxy community hub in the absence of a skate park in town,” Madsen said. “Usually, a skate shop would open after a skatepark was built, but I have been established for such a long time that people are just used to cruising through.

“I don’t think people realize how big the skate community really is because there are so many spots that we aren’t allowed to skate, but I definitely see many people on a regular basis. There is a lot of us.”

Before Oasis, the Hilo Skateplaza Coalition formed around 2007 as a grassroots organization dedicated to building a skatepark for the Hilo community. A few years later, they often met at Oasis to discuss ways to convince the county to build a skatepark.

While participation waned due to a lack of progress, the coalition always included skateboarders and hockey/roller derby skaters working together and communicating with the Hawaiʻi County Parks and Recreation Department, aiming for the same goal they had 18 years ago: to design and build a skatepark and roller arena.

“I personally had to take a step back from the Coalition just due to the frustration and I think a lot of core people stepped away for a while,” Madsen said. “I mean, I’ve worked with three different administrations trying to get something done. It just felt like we would do the work and the county folks would not follow through or they would ask us to do more than we could at the time. This process had a lot of us feeling jaded.”

In 2023, Hawaiʻi County cleared a 2.8-acre parcel of land near the corner of Manono Street and Piʻilani Street, across from the Hoʻolulu Complex, for the future Hilo Skatepark, reviving momentum for the project.

This year, the county is in the design and planning phase, with the coalition working on design elements and Parks and Recreation reviewing the draft environmental assessment from its consultants. A public comment period will follow.

Hawaiʻi County has allocated $5 million in capital improvement project funds for planning, design and construction of the park infrastructure, including roadways, walkways, parking, utilities, landscaping, comfort stations and a concession building.

This month, Gov. Josh Green released $1 million in state capital improvement project funds awarded to the skatepark during the 2024 legislative session. These funds will be used to design the covered skating rink area for roller derby, roller skating, and hockey.

Any leftover funding from the state will be used to build outdoor skating elements for the skatepark.

“Having the designs for a covered skating rink area will be a big, important step, but current funding for the Hilo Skatepark Project does not include funds for the construction of the covered skating rink area,” said Thatcher Moats, an information and education specialist county Parks and Recreation. “And future construction would be dependent on additional funding.”

Additionally, the county plans to support a portion of the cost of constructing the outdoor skating elements, with the Hilo Skateplaza Coalition and potentially other partners raising additional funds for construction of skate features, such as a bowl, hand rails, or ramps.

A projected start date for construction has not been set, as the project is still in the design phase and several steps remain before construction can begin.

“The release of those funds to the county will allow our department to continue the design process for this project,” Moats said. “If there is county and/or state capital improvement project money available after the infrastructure portion of the project, our intent is to support a portion of the cost of the outdoor skating elements.”

Until the skatepark is complete, Madsen will continue running his shop similarly to a skatepark by hosting contests, jams and events at the store and other skateparks across the county.

“Since I am the only local skate shop, I feel a responsibility to the community to host these events and contests,” he said. “I always wrangle up some stuff for a giveaway and it’s just a fun time for everyone. If anyone wants to host a contest of their own, they can come to us to sponsor it, or we can help if it’s needed.”

Oasis Skateshop, including the mini ramp, is open from noon to 6 p.m. daily in Hilo. Check out its Facebook and Instagram pages for pop-up events, new items and other announcements.