Sacramento votes to name skate park after Tyre Nichols
The city of Sacramento voted on Tuesday to name a skate park after Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old Sacramento native who died after being beaten by Memphis police officers after a traffic stop back in January.
The skate park, which had never been formally named, will now be called the Tyre Nichols Skate Park.
"Tyre fell in love with skateboarding at a young age and it wasn't long before it became a part of his lifestyle," read the resolution approved by the city council.
"On most days after high school, you would find Tyre and his friends skating at Regency Park," the resolution says. "This park represents a huge part of Tyre's life."
Keyana Dixon and LaToya Yizar, Nichols' sisters, as well as a close family friend, Angelina Paxton, spoke to the council before the vote was taken, stressing how important the park was to Nichols in his younger years.
"That was where he discovered the most beautiful parts of himself," said Dixon tearfully. "Although he is no longer here with us, that park resembles a very great part of who he was." She said she was grateful that Nichols's legacy of "being free" could live on in the park.
Additionally, $20,000 in funding will be allocated toward improvements to the park, and a bronze plaque dedicated to Nichols will be installed on the premises.
Councilmember Lisa Kaplan, who introduced the proposal, also announced on Tuesday that the city would be partnering with the Skate Park Project, the foundation of pro skater Tony Hawk, to make the upgrades to the park.
Nichols, a Black man, died after the violent encounter with Memphis police. Five former officers are currently facing murder charges and others involved have been fired or are under investigation.