Asbury Park's Historic Carousel Transforms Into Skateboarding Hub

Asbury Park's rich skateboarding history continues to roll forward with an effort to bring skating back to the boards. Waterfront developer Madison Marquette has announced Forth Union Skate and Culture Organization (www.forthunion.com) arriving this Sunday, 2 October 2016 for a limited time at the historic Carousel located in the Casino building on the Asbury Park Boardwalk (www.apboardwalk.com).

Through a partnership with Red Bull, Madison Marquette has procured the central attraction: a three and one half foot mini bowl (previously housed at Mountain Creek resort in Vernon, NJ) which has been installed within the Carousel, the waterfront's 100-year-old historic indoor amusement park.

The Beaux-Arts, semi-circular building is one of Asbury's most significant historic structures. The Carousel playfully combines fantastic ornamental styles throughout its construction featuring buff colored brick, decorative trim, striking limestone exteriors, and extravagant copper detailing as designed by note New York architects Warren and Wetmore. Winged seahorses, dolphins on medallion shells, and frightful masks are just a few of the mythological embellishments crowning this stunning Boardwalk building.

The Grand Opening takes place with a free skate day on Sunday, 2 October 2016 from 10am -5pm (10am-Noon Groms only, Noon-5pm, All Ages) and will be in conjunction with the movie premiere The Fourth Phase starring iconic snowboarder Travis Rice which will take place at the Paramount Theatre located on the Asbury Park Boardwalk at 1300 Ocean Ave. Doors open at 7:30pm, film begins at 9pm. Tickets are free. Visit www.forthunion.com for more information.

SUNDAY, 2 OCTOBER 2016 TIMELINE:

10am- 5pm Free Skate Day
10am-Noon Groms Only
Noon-5pm All Ages
4pm-7pm Anchors Bend Happy Hour
6pm Bonfire @ Anchors Bend
7:30pm Doors Open: Fourth Phase Movie Premiere
8:30pm Red Bull Pre Show: Fourth Phase Movie Premiere
9pm Fourth Phase Movie Premiere

Integral to securing the mini bowl and advising Madison on the design and operations of the skate features are veteran New Jersey skateboarders, Lou Cuccaro of Metal Skateboards and Derek Rinaldi of SKATEDAILY.net. Both are actively involved with the Asbury Park Skateboard Foundation (APSF) whose mission is to build a permanent, free, state-of-the-art skate park within the city of Asbury Park. Cuccaro and Rinaldi have also forged partnerships with national non- profits, Boards for Bros and A.skate Foundation, both of which have designated Asbury Park satellite locations for expanding respective community centered skateboarding missions.

The state of New Jersey and the city of Asbury Park, specifically, have a well-documented skateboarding history; the events that transpired at the Casino Skatepark and at the Deal Lake Pool in the 1990's have appeared internationally in magazines, books, and film. Forth Union seeks to help reinvigorate the scene and sport of skateboarding in Asbury Park. In July 2016, the Carousel hosted the East Coast premiere of Made in Venice a documentary about the struggle to create and maintain a public skate park on Venice Beach in California. Revered skateboard publication, Juice Magazine, flew Editor Dan Levy and Jesse Martinez, legendary Venice skateboarder and the subject of the documentary, to the premiere to the thrill of Asbury Park attendees.

When discussing the plans for the return of skateboarding to Asbury Park, Juice Magazine editor Dan Levy said "...skateboarding as an activity in the historic Carousel building breathes hope and progress back into a community that would otherwise be overlooked. This is significant for skateboarders of all generations, rekindling the spirit and support of community-minded participants."

Forth Union's next phase is slated for Spring, 2017 and will include a lounge area to accommodate special events, skateboard related retail within specially curated shipping containers, and a dedicated area for diverse range of food truck vendors. In addition to hosting skate related events, art installations, and live music, Forth Union will function as an information hub for the APSF's fundraising and park design efforts in Asbury Park. Forth Union's unique programming will become the nucleus of this new entertainment center and will reside in the Carousel on a temporary basis while Madison Marquette completes design work for the future redevelopment of the Casino/Carousel complex.

"We are proud to provide another innovative entertainment experience on the Asbury Park Boardwalk. Our diverse range of retail, specialty attractions, and eclectic hospitality continues to elevate Asbury into one of the finest Waterfront destinations in the country," stated Peter Tomai, Managing Director, Investments, Madison Marquette.

The Fourth PhaseFrom the creators of "The Art of FLIGHT," Red Bull Media House presents "The Fourth Phase," which tells the story of iconic snowboarder Travis Rice embarking on a journey to dreamlike landscapes around the North Pacific, discovering more than new terrain. The highly anticipated film premieres on the East Coast in Asbury Park on Sunday, 2 October at the Paramount Theatre located on the Asbury Park Boardwalk. The film premieres globally as well on October 2 on Red Bull TV, and goes on sale the next day. For more visit www.TheFourthPhase.com.

Madison Marquette is a private real estate investment and operating company and a member of the global investment firm Capital Guidance. Founded in 1992, the firm employs a proven repositioning and redevelopment strategy to create value in infill and mixed-use assets in major urban gateway markets throughout the United States. Madison Marquette enhances returns while mitigating risk by directly controlling and managing the execution of its investment strategies. With more than 230 employees, Madison Marquette covers major U.S. markets through its offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, Philadelphia, Asbury Park, Dallas and Fort Lauderdale. For more information, visit www.madisonmarquette.com.