BREWER – Escalating problems with noise, vulgar language and drugs are some of the reasons local officials decided Thursday to shut down the city’s 3-year-old skate park at Maple Street Park, the first such facility to open in the area.

The closure is effective immediately, according to City Manager Stephen Bost. City employees are scheduled to begin removing the skate park’s mostly concrete equipment today. The equipment will be stored in a secure area until the city decides what its next move, if any, will be.

Bost said members of the City Council were informed of city officials’ decision early Thursday and all supported pulling the plug on the park.

“It was a noble experiment, but it was one that didn’t work,” Bost said. The skate park was the product of a $20,000 fund-raising campaign led by local youths who wanted a place for skateboarding and in-line skating and members of the city’s Police Department, who felt badly about having to chase local boarders and rollerbladers from parking lot to parking lot.

Though the first two seasons at the park were relatively tame, this spring has seen problems there escalate to a level neither city officials nor residents who live near the park were willing to accept. Last year, the city was able to provide a monitor during much of the time the park was open. Given the budget restraints the city currently faces, that was not an option for this year, city officials said.

Police Chief Steven Barker said Thursday that some of the problems that led to the park’s closure were obscene language and disrespectful behavior, a lack of respect for the people who live in the neighborhood, police and other adults, vandalism and unacceptable levels of noise that persisted long after the facility closed for the night. Other factors were reports of drug transactions, underage drinking – even littering and public urination, despite the fact that there are trash cans on site and a Port-A-Potty about 100 feet away.

While many of those who have used the park have followed the rules, the actions of those who didn’t generated enough trouble to force local officials to shut the park down early on three occasions in recent weeks.

“It breaks our hearts to have to do this, but they have forced us to take this action,” Barker said. “We have warned them and warned them.” It was a matter of restoring safety and quality of life in the neighborhood.”

The city has not, however, completely closed the door on someday reopening the park somewhere else.

Ken Hanscom, the city’s parks and recreation director, said he would discuss the matter with members of his department’s advisory committee.

“It’s been a struggle. We’ve got to protect the neighborhood and they [the skate park’s patrons] blew it,” he said. “We’re going to kind of regroup, take a deep breath and see what some of the options are.”

Though the park is now off limits to bladers and boarders, Hanscom said, it remains open for jogging, walking, baseball, soccer and other leisure-time pursuits.