Downtown Roseburg Park Gets Concrete Game Donations

ROSEBURG, Ore. – A small downtown park is getting a big upgrade thanks to the donation of concrete games designed to bring more life and activity to the area. On May 28, Roseburg-based Stone Age Concrete Games installed a 2,400-pound concrete pingpong table and two 400-pound cornhole boards at Eagles Park, located at the end of Southeast Jackson Street. The donation was made in memory of the late Bobby Troup, a former tennis pro and local table tennis enthusiast. The donation was coordinated in partnership with nonprofit Thrive Umpqua and its Built Environment Committee, who helped connect the James family—owners of Stone Age Concrete Games—with city officials and Roseburg Parks and Recreation staff. Eagles Park already features two picnic tables with inlaid chess and checkerboards, but until recently, the quarter-acre space had largely gone unnoticed by people shopping, working, or dining downtown. That’s starting to change with the arrival of students living across the street in Umpqua Community College’s new downtown dorm, Hawk’s Hideaway. “We’ve been working to do something at Eagles Park for quite a while,” said Lance Colley, retired city manager and current chair of Thrive Umpqua’s Steering Committee. “When the college started moving kids in here, the question became, ‘How do we involve the students and make the park what it was meant to be—a community gathering space?’” The idea for the pingpong table started nearly two decades ago. Josh James, now operations manager at Stone Age, was still in high school when he and his dad, Lem James, attended a party where a pingpong table was the center of attention. Lem, who had been thinking about starting a business, saw potential. Josh sketched a design in a drafting class the following week, and Lem poured their first concrete table within two weeks. What started as a local idea grew into Stone Age Concrete Games, the first company in North America to specialize in concrete tables and lawn games. Today, their work can be found across the country—from San Francisco’s United Nations Plaza to parks in Texas, Florida, and Alaska. Local installations include the Parrott House and Backside Brewing. The company now makes concrete game tables for pingpong, chess, foosball, shuffleboard, and more—including newer additions like Connect 4 and Ladder Ball. The Eagles Park table includes a plaque honoring Troup, who ran a casual but competitive underground pingpong club in a warehouse-style room known as “the Pit,” just a block from the park. Josh James met Troup shortly before his passing last fall, and they played many games together. To keep that energy going, James has organized casual pingpong nights at the park on Thursdays at 6 p.m. Locals are invited to bring their own paddles and join the fun. Stone Age Concrete has also created a Facebook page where players can connect, post updates, and share photos. “We’re so grateful to have the new additions donated to the park and hope to see more of the community using Eagles Park for recreation,” said Tracy David, Roseburg Parks and Recreation coordinator. “It’s a great location—right downtown and close to businesses.” Like other park amenities, the pingpong table and cornhole boards are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Players are encouraged to be courteous and rotate games when others are waiting. One informal method: form a line, let the winners stay on, and rotate in new challengers to keep the games moving.