Summer is winding down which means it’s time to gear up for fall sports! Registration is now open for various sports in the Platte County Sports Leagues. Each league offers multiple sports available for all ages up to adult.

Northland Sports Alliance

• Fall Soccer leagues include U5 Fun Soccer ($60), U6 Pony Soccer ($70) and U6 Advanced to U12 Division ($90). The registration deadline is August 13. The season runs from September 11 to October 31.

• Competitive Baseball leagues include 9U, 10U – 14U Major/AAA & AA. Divisions are based on the oldest player’s age on April 30, 2011. Teams play the division they will play Spring 2011. Team fees are $900 for 9U – 12U and $1,000 for 13U – 14U. The season is 12 games (six double-headers) at Tiffany Hills Parks on Sundays & Mondays. The season starts on September 12.

• Competitive Softball league is for ages 10U – 14U with play days on Tuesday. The cost is $850 per team for a six-week season, double-header season at Tiffany Hills Park starting September 14. Teams must be sanctioned with USSA and provide their own game balls. The registration deadline is August 20.

• Recreational Baseball league is a mini season for ages 7U – 14U. Team registration fee is $450 and the registration deadline is August 13. Teams will play under USSSA rules for a 5-game season that runs from September 13 to October 15. Teams provide their own equipment and uniforms.

Detailed information on all Northland Sports Alliance leagues can be found by calling (816) 587-0880.

Platte City Parks and Recreation

Platte City Parks & Recreation is sponsoring a Fall Soccer League for kids in Kindergarten through 6th grade. The league cost is $65. Registration is on-line at www.plattecity.org or at City Hall, 400 Main Street, Platte City, Monday through Friday, 8 am – 5 p.m. The deadline for registration is August 31. The season will run from September 25 to October 16. For more information call Dannie Stamper or Bill Williams at (816) 858-5627.

Platte County Community Centers/YMCA

Flag Football is available for kids in Kindergarten through 7th grade. The season runs from September 6 to November 6. The registration deadline is August 23.

Basketball is available for kids in Kindergarten through 7th grade. The season runs from September 13 to November 6. The registration deadline is August 30.

Bitty Soccer is an instructional league for ages 3 to 4. The season runs from September 1 – 20. The registration deadline is August 27.

Bitty Flag Football is an instructional league for ages 3 to 4. The season runs from October 4 – 20. The registration deadline is October 1.

Bitty Baseball is an instructional league for ages 3 to 4. The season runs from September 3 – 18. The registration deadline is August 31.

Adult Co-Ed Volleyball is for ages 18 and older. The season runs from September 8 to October 20. No individual registrations will be accepted. The registration deadline is August 30.

Adult Co-Ed Basketball is for ages 18 and older. The season runs from September 12 to November 7. No individual registrations will be accepted. The registration deadline is August 23.

Adult Co-Ed Softball is for ages 18 and older. The season runs from September 3 – October 22. No individual registrations will be accepted. The registration deadline is August 23.

For league entry forms and additional information, contact Brandon Palmer at (816) 505-2622.

Weston Soccer Club

Weston Soccer Club offers a fall recreational soccer league. The season will run from September 18 to October 16 with two games played each Saturday. Registration is 6 to 8 p.m., August 5 at the New Deal Tobacco Warehouse, 17955 State Route 45 N. Weston, and 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., August 17 at the West Platte Elementary Back to School Night. Prices are $40 – one child, $70 – two children, $90 – three children and $110 – four children. The prices will increase by $10 after August 18. The final deadline for registration is August 27. For more information contact Stephanie at (816) 640-2446 or Trista at (816) 695-8207.

Capture rain that is washing away and put it to good use! Platte County Parks and Recreation is hosting a Rain Barrel workshop with Bridging the Gap at 7 p.m., July 22 at the Platte Ridge park shelter. The workshop cost $45 which includes a rain barrel for all participants to take home.

Rain barrels collect and store runoff rainwater from roofs. They reduce energy by decreasing the demand for treated tap water, which in return,  saves money and helps protect the environment. Since rain water can be stored for long periods of time, it’s beneficial during droughts and hot summers.

Payments and RSVP must be received by Fri., July 16. Payments must be cash or check only. Cash may be dropped off or a chech may be mailed to 415 Third Street, Platte City, MO 64079. There will be no extra barrels at the workshop so reserve accordingly.

For more information or to reserve a rain barrel, call (816) 858-3419 or email Jamie Bequette at jbequette@co.platte.mo.us

Pack up your buns and hot dogs and head over to EH Young Park for the 4th of July weekend. Some areas are a little muddy but there is still plenty of space to hang out and play games. One section of the Missouri Riverfront Trail is still closed. Don’t forget sunscreen!

At last night’s Board of Aldermen meeting, the Board voted 4-2 to move the playground equipment at Renner Brenner Park to the top level of the park property.  This decision follows the Park Board’s recommendation for the park layout, which will also leave the skate park in its current location. 

The Park Board originally presented its recommendation to move the playground equipment from the bottom level of the park to the top level this spring, but the decision was delayed while the City investigated the impact the move would have on the property.  Renner Brenner Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was thought to be the location of a trading village for the Kansas City Hopewell, which is part of the Middle Woodland culture.  Since the original playground plans involved placing poles to anchor the equipment in the ground, the City entered into a contract with SCI Engineering, Inc to excavate the site.  (Read: What’s going on at Renner Brenner Park? ) Although SCI determined that it would not significantly disturb the site to place the poles in the ground, the City has since changed the site design and will now mount the equipment on a concrete pad to ensure the unexcavated portion of the site is disturbed as little as possible.

“Although differing opinions existed on where to locate the playground in Renner Brenner, Board members on both sides of the issue cited providing a safe, family-friendly environment for residents and visitors of the City as one of their key considerations,” Meredith Hauck, city spokesperson, said. 

The playground move is expected to happen sometime this fall.

Platte County voters will go to the polls on August 4 to decide whether or not to renew and continue the dedicated half-cent sales tax to fund maintenance and improvement of the County parks system.  This tax was originally approved by voters in 2000 and would once again sunset in 10 years.

Setting the stage for this effort, Platte County adopted a Parks Master Plan earlier this summer.  The plan sets priorities for the county-wide system of parks, trails and community centers and how they will be maintained.  If the tax is approved on August 4, improvements would include: new walking and biking trails, including connecting the Missouri Riverfront Trail to new trails along Brush Creek and Line Creek; expanded community centers with more space for exercise equipment and larger pools; and improvements to parks including more playgrounds, walking paths and natural areas.

The highest priority of the new parks plan according to Platte County Presiding Commissioner Betty Knight is to continue to provide parks that are well maintained and safe.

“We need to take care of what has been built,” Knight said.  “This new plan balances maintenance with new improvements that the citizens told us were at the top of their list.”

The Riverside Park Board met with Platte County Parks representatives at its July meeting to review the Parks Plan and discuss how it would impact the City and opportunities for collaboration in the future.  Riverside residents have benefitted from the partnership between the City and Platte County Parks, most notably with the Missouri Riverfront Trail  and Platte County Community Centers, which are part of the Healthy Citizens Initiative.

If you’ve taken a walk over to Renner Brenner Park this week, you’ve likely noticed a lot of work going on.  A 50′ by 90′ space located near the shelter house and restroom facility is in the beginning stages of archeological excavation. 

Renner Brenner Park is located on Site 23PL1, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1969.  This site is considered a type-site for the Kansas City Hopewell, which is part of the Middle Woodland cultural entity, and is thought to have been the location of a village where people from surrounding, smaller sites came during the day to work and trade.  Many excavations have taken place in Renner Brenner Park and the area around it over the years, starting in the 1920s with work done by J. Mett Shippee, an amateur archeologist who worked with Waldo R. Wedel, assistant curator of archeology of the Smithsonian Institute. (Learn more about Renner Brenner’s history)

Last week, the Board of Aldermen approved an ordinance with SCI Engineering, Inc. to excavate the section of the park where the new playground is planned.  Since the site where Renner Brenner Park is located was previously plowed for agricultural purposes, the excavation will remove the plow zone from the entire project area in thin layers by mechanical means.   An archaeological crew is on site closely monitoring each layer’s removal and any artifacts that are found will be removed as they are located.  Any areas that are identified as containing significant artifact concentrations and archeological features will be hand excavated.  All fieldwork is being done in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Identification of Archaeological Resources and will take into account established National Park Services and SHPO survey guidelines.    

In addition to excavating this area, SCI will create a cultural resource management plan for Renner Brenner Park and site 23PL1, which has boundaries that extend outside the park property.  The plan will include information about the archeological site and methods to deal with cultural materials for any future projects in the area.

Renner Brenner Park Excavation Site

Platte County Parks and Recreation and the World Atlatl Association are hosting a Prehistoric Atlatl Demonstration on Saturday, June 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the soccer fields at Platte Ridge Park (17130 MO Highway 371).  The atlatl is a device for throwing a spear or dart usually consisting of a rod or board with a groove on the upper surface and a hook, thong or projection at the rear end to hold the dart in place until its release.  Its purpose is to give greater velocity and force to the spear.  The atlatl dates back as far as 25,000 years ago.  For more information on this event, visit the Platte County Parks and Recreation Web site.

Platte County and the City of Riverside are teaming up to host a celebration event at the Missouri Riverfront Trail, west trailhead, at 10:00 AM.  Local officials will be on hand to lead a trail walk along with health and wellness professionals who will provide information about their programs.  In addition, participants can sign up for the new “Explore Parks Challenge” a fun way to visit all of the new parks and trails built in Platte County during the past eight years.

Cities and Counties from around the Kansas City area are planning multiple events to draw attention to promote the many health benefits of trails. With obesity rates high in Kansas City, trails are a convenient, enjoyable way to help improve the health of our citizens.   Walking outdoors consistently rates as the most frequent recreational activity in America.  Recent surveys in Platte County back up this up, with 76% of County residents stating they had a need for walking trails.

In addition to the event at the Missouri Riverfront Trail, hosted walks will also take place on the Southern Platte Pass trail, the Prairie Creek Greenway, and the Weston Bluffs trail.  All events start at 10:00 AM.  For more information contact Platte County Parks and Recreation at 858.3419 or online at www.platteparks.com.

More than 70 seniors came to the Community Center today for the annual Senior Sweetheart Dance featuring the Ed Smith Band. Senior dances take place the last Monday of the month at the Community Center and are open to anyone. Best of all, they’re FREE!

The Missouri Riverfront Trail, located in Riverside, was honored recently by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Missouri for its Engineering Excellence Award.  The trail was a collaborative effort between Platte County, the City and TranSystems Corp. of Kansas City.  Click here to read the complete new release on the award.