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In a few short months, Dylan Anderson of Herndon will see one of his dreams materialize.

Next spring, a skate park that the 16-year-old has sought from the Town of Herndon since he was a pre-teen will become concrete -- literally.

After nearly four years of planning, the town has hired a Seattle-based concrete skate park company, Grindline, to design it.

"We have $175,000 total for the park, from soup to nuts," said Cindy Roeder, Herndon Parks and Recreation director. "That's it, and that's for everything ... the project should be completed sometime in early 2010."

The skate park will be built in Herndon's Trailside Park, at the intersection of Crestview Drive and Herndon Parkway.

On Nov. 18, Roeder oversaw the first of three final design meetings with Grindline.

In attendance were Anderson and about 40 or so additional skateboarders who watched with enthusiasm as a promotional video clip showcased other Grindline-designed parks.

After the short film, Grindline's lead designer, Micah Shapiro, asked the skaters what features and elements they want in Herndon's 4,000-square-foot park.

"This is your park," he told them. "There are so many elements we can put in the skate park, so let's think of some cool ones."

"I have been waiting for this for, like, most of my life," Anderson said. "I am really glad it's finally happening."

"It's true," said Karin Anderson, Dylan's mother. "I have the cutest picture of Dylan on a skateboard when he was like 4-years-old. Skating has been a lifelong passion for him."

Other skaters at the meeting shared the sentiment. Herndon resident Teddy Koufos, 22, has been skating since sixth grade. "It's still cool," he said.

"I agree," added Herndon resident James Bridges, 48, an electrical engineer at Orbital Sciences Corp. "Kids call me 'Grandpa,' but I still skate because I get the same thrill out of it that I first got when I started in the 1970s."

Karin Anderson said she helped Dylan and other local children petition Herndon officials for the park in April 2006 because town zoning prohibited skating. "There was no public skating allowed anywhere," she said.

"Kids that skate are exercising, keeping in shape and effectively utilizing downtime from studying and organized sports, which is important," she said. "Before now, there has been nowhere for them to legally do it. It was an easy thing to get behind, especially since everyone was skating on my driveway because they had nowhere else to go."

From there, she said, "the kids took ownership of the project."

"I have had dozens of kids approaching me for at least the last 18 months, asking me when the park will be built," said Herndon Town Councilman Charlie Waddell. "Now, with it fast becoming a reality, there is even more enthusiasm."

And parents are also supporting the creation of the park as a way for their children to branch out in terms of creative activities.

"Skateboarding is a creative outlet," said Karin Anderson. "Not to mention the fact that it promotes the value of focusing and learning a skill. Dylan has been skating nearly his whole life and he should be burned out by now, but he's not. He's 16, and he has a girlfriend and he's learning to drive a car, but that's all novel to him. Skating is something he has mastered and can continue to master. This new park will help him with that process."

Apparently, it is never too late to begin. Patti Hurst, 42, is an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice. She lives in Arlington but says she is really looking forward to skating in the new Herndon park.

"I have only been skating for three years," she said. "I got into it as a mid-life crisis thing. Now I love it and I can't wait for this new park."