Skateboard shop is for all

Don’t be afraid, parents. At L77 Board Shop, you’re welcome, too.

As skateboarding becomes more accepted and more young people take up the sport, parents don’t have to sit on the sidelines, said shop owner Jason Cline, who along with his wife, Kim, took over the L77 last month after buying the business from a friend.

“We want to be a place where kids can come but parents aren’t afraid to come as well,” Jason Cline said.

No matter who shows up, shoppers will find a wide selection of skateboards, wakeboards and snowboards, as well as clothing, sunglasses and more. The store has been around for 10 years, and has been open for two years at 12505 E. Sprague Ave.

People have become more interested in skateboarding since the late 1990s, Cline said, who has been involved with the sport for more than 14 years.

“I’ve just always been into it, my whole life,” Cline said. The X Games and snowboarding at the Winter Olympic Games has piqued interest, he said.

The Clines aren’t strangers to running a business. The two have shared ownership in Shotzy’s Coffee, 507 S. Pines Road, for five years.

As he and his wife start out with L77, they will focus on actual hard goods sales, such as skateboards.

“We want this to be the place to go to get boards,” he said.

A typical skateboard setup will cost about $150, Cline said.

Easy pickings for thieves

Spokane Valley Police are warning business owners to use more common sense to prevent theft losses.

Recently two businesses essentially left money out in the open for thieves to take, said Sgt. Dave Reagan, spokesman for Spokane Valley Police.

In one business, an employee with a key who normally closes the store did not show up for her assigned shift. Her manager fired her, then the manager locked the business and left several hundred dollars of cash inside, Reagan said.

The next day, employees said the cash was gone and nobody had forcibly broken into the store.

“Coincidence? I think not,” Reagan said.

In another instance, three company credit cards that were left in unlocked trucks were used to buy more than $2,000 of fuel. The business left PIN numbers with the cards.

Reagan said business owners should keep drop safes if employees are handling cash at the end of the day, and should always keep PIN numbers and credit cards secured.

Businesses interested in tips on how to reduce theft can call the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department’s crime prevention specialists, Deputy Greg Snyder at 477-2592 and Deputy Travis Pendell at 477-6044.