Schenectady, NY Public Conduct: Skateboarding Rules (2026)

Section 248-39(B) targets skateboarding specifically within two defined business districts: the "Downtown Special Assessment District" described in § 9-2 of the City Code, and the "Upper Union Street Business Improvement District" described in § 8-1. Inside either district, no person may ride or propel a skateboard on any street, highway, sidewalk or public path except in areas the city has specifically designated for that use. The code defines a skateboard broadly as any wheeled platform designed or used in fact for riding underfoot that has no steering mechanism, so the ban is not limited to any particular style of board.

Violating the ban is a traffic infraction rather than a criminal offense, but § 248-39(B)(3) also reaches the adults responsible for a minor: a parent or guardian who knowingly permits a child or ward to skateboard in the restricted zone is separately liable for authorizing the violation. Penalties, set in § 248-39(B)(4), run up to a $125 fine, impounding the skateboard for as long as 30 days, and a period of community service the court sets, and the court can hold the impounded board until any fine assessed is actually paid.

The skateboard rule sits inside a broader section that lets the City Engineer regulate parking, standing and stopping in specific locations, including the Jay Street and Stratton Plaza pedestrian walkways, where motorized vehicles are separately barred outside narrow delivery and emergency windows. Both restrictions, skateboards and motor vehicles, are aimed at keeping the same downtown pedestrian corridors clear.