Shillside in Switzerland recently celebrated it’s one year anniversary and so here to jinx it are four photos from Nicolas Büchi. The crew behind it is also involved with September Wheels and because all good hearted people are connected through the cosmos and the plate-of-shrimp lattice of coincidence, they even have a local chapter of C.R.E.T.E. courtesy of Born Ugly. Concrete D.I.Y. is rad, but let’s get those teleportation devices happening so We can visit them all. Four pictures and a video of Shillside after the jump.

Dan Bourqui put up a gallery of shots from last weekend’s Vans Protec Pool Party, check them out at 50-50.com. I watched about a half hour of it on Saturday, the whole thing kind of snuck up on me. I didn’t realize it was happening until Grover called me asking what time it started. The biggest noteworthy event has to be Tony Hawks return to competition. He placed 4th in the Masters. The webcast announcers definitely recognized his skills but pointed out his tendency to “halfpipe It” instead of scoping out pool-ish lines. Also of interest, Amelia Brodka noticed that last year’s female winner Lizzie Armanto (see photo by JCB) was inexplicably left off the hanging banner, even though they had been included in previous years. – Thanks to Concretins Nik for the tip.

Spohn Ranch has begun building a new skatepark in the Dalles, OR. It’s a small 7,500 square foot street spot type park that will be 100% poured in place concrete. I don’t know how this one got past all the Northwest companies, but you know what they say about spilt milk. Catch some renders of the park after the jump. UPDATE: I forgot to include the renders, but I’ve added them.. – Thanks to VInce Onel for the tip.

Commonwealth Skateboarding in Portland is having it’s grand opening on Saturday, February 26th. Doors open at 3, product giveaway at 6, photography show by Bryce Kanights, Jon Humphries and Garric Ray. The website has been updated with hours and price structure. Check out Skate Daily for some more background on Commonwealth. Flyer after the jump. [Source: EPM]

SE Portland has a new spot in the works called Commonwealth Skateboarding. Yes, it’s going to be pay-to-play, but it’s also indoors and concrete. I haven’t seen it in person but I hear it’s comparable in size to BSSS. Who is behind it? Check out Sherkowski Daily for the scoop or visit the Facebook page. Meanwhile, Grover gained entrance and shot some work in progress.

Back in May of last year there was a Shot of the Week from a DIY spot in New Orleans that has since become known as Peach Orchard. I’m happy to report that the spot is still going and they’ve added some new concrete. They’re holding benefits and accepting donations via Paypal and the head bean counter Joey O’Mahoney.

This installment of Time Lapse Theater is from the Bennett Project, courtesy of Conspiracy Skateboards and featuring the Team Pain crew. – Thanks to G.J. for the tip.

The new skatepark for the city of Lafayette, CO is having a grand opening on December 11th, at noon, although I hear there has already been a soft opening. Check some more pictures on the Facebook page.. It seems like Team Pain owns the state of Colorado these days.

Second oldest skate joke in the book after using a real broom to pull a “sweeper.” And that familiar gag is digging a bowl in your back yard and calling it a fish pond to get around zoning and nosy neighbors. In the case of the Bear’s Reef, the homeowner was digging up cat poo in the back yard and unearthed a buried fishpond, inspiring him to renovate it to make it more skateable. Beefed up transition and homemade coping. Sounds like a great project. No idea what part of the country this is in, but I found it while checking in Herman’s Hole, so maybe it’s in the Midwest. Check out Bear’s Reef.

Well, it’s already been kickstarted, it needs to be finished. This is a backyard bowl in Richmond, Virginia. The builders are looking for money to essentially fill the rest of the yard with concrete. Their motivation, besides the obvious, is the total lack of skateparks in Richmond. People pledge donations that are held in escrow on the condition that the $5,500 goal is met before time runs out. Visit the kickstart page to watch the video and learn more.