Craft Bike & Skate Shop Moving to Main Street

Skaters and BMX bikers flock to Craft's shop at 68 S. Main St., where supplies, a repair bench and video games are an ideal short walk from River Island Park, but only the retail will follow its Main Street relocation. 

The shop will shutter its park-side space Sunday in favor of a yet-to-be determined, pared-down spot on Main Street.

Susan Kirwan, owner of the recently opened shop, says she intended the space, which provides the only skater and BMX supplies in the area, as a positive alternative to unruly teen behavior. While she's there, engaging teens drawn to her shop, she says, she knows it's working. But she can't offer enough at the fledgling business to keep the kids distracted from risky behaviors like drinking and smoking. "I'm not prepared to handle that yet in my goals," Kirwan said.

Kirwan is especially disturbed by young people drinking and smoking in River Island Park. "I'm concerned for the amount of it and how brazen it is," she said. When she first opened, she said, she thought drinking and smoking at the park only happened during the evening. But it's worse than that. "They do it all the time," Kirwan said.

While most of the young patrons to her store are well behaved while she's around, Kirwan said she can't be there all the time, and she needs more help to supervise a spot that draws so many young people so close to bad influences. Late last week, Kirwan said, a young man threatened her clerk. When she spoke to the youth about it, she said, "He just went off on me immediately." Unfortunately, Kirwan said, a few bad apples that have ruined the positive resources she's providing. 

To properly supervise and engage the teens, Kirwan said, she'd need about 10 additional people. She's not able to bring in that many staffers yet, but plans to partner with a local non-profit are in the works. Sometime next year, Kirwan hopes to be able to offer enough activities, options and supervision to make what she's attempted at 68 S. Main St. work. 

On Monday night, Kirwan held a meeting with the local kids to explain the situation, and to let them know their actions had consequences. She said she explained the reasons she had for deciding to move. She reached some of them, she said, but not all acted on the message. About 10 minutes after the meeting, five of the kids were hanging out at River Island Park. "They were shooting BB guns at each other for fun," Kirwan said.

Kirwan asked parents to come down and be a part of the city and the parks, "A little bit more so it isn't just falling on a few parents." She said she spoke to one woman who had done that, who told her the kids just didn't appear to want to listen to anyone. She said the adults of the city need to be active as a group, visible and involved to make it work.

Woonsocket Police Information Officer Det. Jamie Paone said officers have been called to River Island Park three times in the last two weeks for reports of noise and suspicious persons. She said officers also do extra patrols when they have down time from other immediate calls. That down time is not frequent with only 88 officers in a department that's supposed to have 101, she said. "It kind of limits what we can do," she said.

If someone calls police attention to drinking or unruly behavior in the parks, Paone said, "We kick them out," but they can't be there all the time.

Kirwan said more adult involvement in the Parks would be good for Woonsocket and for the majority of teens who appreciate the space and resources she tried to provide at Craft.  "There are also just so many wonderful kids," Kirwan said.