The Brooklyn Banks in 2009. Photo credit: Rasmus Zwickson via Flickr

Tony Hawk’s The Skatepark Project announced plans Thursday to bring the much-loved Brooklyn Banks skate park back to life in a partnership with the nonprofit Brooklyn Bridge Manhattan/Create Gotham Park project. The organizations have joined an ongoing initiative to develop Gotham Park and return the iconic skateboarding mecca to the community by creating a new public park under the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn Bridge. During his State of the City speech on Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams voiced his support for the new public space.

Find out more about bringing back the Banks

Photo credit: Jonathan Robles

Remember when having a group of teenagers with skateboards hang out at your building was considered a bad thing? Times have changed, skateboarding is an Olympic sport, and Waterline Square‘s skate park, complete with a custom mural by a local artist, is open. Located in the Upper West Side condo and rental complex’s 100,000-square-foot amenity center, the Waterline Club, the skate park offers a half-pipe and mini ramp, plus hang-out space with seating.  The new amenity is the first of its kind in a New York City residential development.

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• QR Coded Pins Given to Chinese Senior Citizens to Help Them Find Their Way Home: More proof that your smartphone is way too smart. Pins with QR codes filled with personal information like home address, emergency contact and such were given to  local elderly residents in China’s Anhui Province to help them find their way home if they get lost. Springwise has the details of this innovative campaign.
• From Empty Tunnel to Awesome Skate Park: Footwear brand, Vans, took over the empty Old Vic tunnels at London Waterloo and turned them into the House of Vans, a super rad skate park and arts venue. Creative Review features the only indoor park in London and its future plans for concerts, art exhibits, film screenings and more.

Images: House of Vans courtesy of Creative Reivew (left); QR badges for Chinese seniors courtesy of Springwise (right)