The Experience: Mabel Davis Park has to win the category of “best use of a former landfill.” This park has been open since 1979 (its former incarnation as a landfill occurred from 1944-1955). It actually closed from 2000-2004 to clean up lead and pesticides found there, and now is clean and remodeled. The most amazing feature of this park is the new skate park, open since December 1, 2005. The skate park is incredibly popular, used by young, skinny, shirtless boys of all backgrounds. It was actually wonderful to see a park being used so much, and to know the boys were engaged in an activity which was actually good for them and keeping them out of trouble. But the wholesome factor was just a side note to the thrill of watching these aspiring Tony Hawks do amazing things with a skateboard. The concrete surface is large and includes many extreme dips and varying levels. The boys skated by the hour, stopping only to replenish themselves when the ice cream truck came around. There was one tiny boy of no older than six that we watched in fascination, but he held his own with the other boys, most of whom were teens. By the time we left at 7:00 pm on a Thursday, there were approximately 100 people skating or watching on the grassy hill inside the skating area. There are also a few picnic tables outside the skating are to sit in the shade and watch. If you can tear yourself away from this spectacle, the playground is right down the hill, featuring a nice circus-themed playscape. There was also a small playscape and some baby swings. A pavilion is located by the playscape, and several picnic tables and barbecue grills are in the shade nearby. The basketball court is also nearby, and is shaded by trees, which is unusual from what we have seen in other park visits. There are also some nice shaded benches to watch the playscape, and a water fountain. The feature our children enjoyed the most was a large pile of rocks set up against the hill leading from the playscape down to a large flat field, probably set into place for erosion control. The rocks were the perfect size to climb on, so the kids amused themselves for quite a while scampering around like mountain goats.