Hundreds of people turned out for the official groundbreaking for the Stone F. Mercurio Memorial Skatepark off Bellamy Harbor in Rome on Thursday. More than $1 million has been raised over the past year to bring the project to life — in honor of a young man who lost his life in 2023.
Christian Mercurio and other members of the community, including Rome Rotary President Cameron Stewart, spoke at length during the public portion of the meeting in favor of using American Rescue Plan Act funding to help pay for the SFM Memorial Skatepark at Bellamy Harbor. There will be more fundraising events in the future, they said. The project has raised more than $500,000 so far, but is still short the more than $1 million needed for Phase 1 of construction. The Mercurio family has asked the council to consider using some of the remaining ARPA funding to close that funding gap.
With fundraising not where they hoped it would be at the end of the year, Christopher and Andrea Mercurio asked the Rome Common Council on Wednesday to consider using American Rescue Plan Act funding to help build the Stone F. Mercurio Memorial Skatepark.
ROME, N.Y. Oneida County has awarded $250,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to assist in the construction of a skatepark in Rome dedicated to the memory of a Rome man who was enthusiastic about the sport.