Erie, PA Public Conduct: Skateboarding Rules (2026)

City Code Article 735 defines a skateboard broadly, covering wood or fiberglass decks on two axles with clay, polyurethane or other wheels, and it expressly includes motorized skateboards propelled by an on-board motor. "Skateboarding" itself is defined just as broadly: lying, sitting, squatting, kneeling or standing on the board while propelling it by any method, including being pushed, being towed, one-foot pushing, riding downhill, or running a mounted motor. 02 then draws two zones of prohibition. First, skateboarding is flatly prohibited in Perry Square Park, the downtown green bounded by North and South Park Row and Peach and French Streets, and in the Transitway Mall, the State Street corridor between Tenth Street and South Park Row.

Second, skateboarding is prohibited on all other City-owned and/or City-controlled property citywide, unless the appropriate governmental entity specifically authorizes it for that location. The ordinance dates to Ordinance No. 92-1989 and has not been amended since. Because the ban defaults to prohibited-unless-authorized on any City property, riders need to confirm in advance whether a specific City lot, plaza or garage carries an authorization before treating it as open. The Bureau of Police enforces the article, typically by citation issued on the spot to the rider (or a parent/guardian if the rider is a minor).