The names of Parkville’s riverfront parks were up for debate recently after discussions by the city’s parks board and board of aldermen.
English Landing and Platte Landing parks lie alongside the Missouri River, and as part of the city’s park plan monument signage similar to the city entryway signs at Highway 9 near downtown are planned for installation.
The Community Land and Recreation Board (CLARB) was split after discussions last month on installation of monument signage and wayfinder signs at English and Platte Landing parks. With a vote of 4-4 the board was tied on whether to leave the park names as-is or to rename either one or both of the parks - or the entire riverfront park system.
Due to the tie, director of public works Alysen Abel brought the matter to the board of aldermen late last month for their thoughts, and ultimate decision to leave the parks names alone.
“I’m in favor of keeping the two names because English Landing is named for the English who settled here and Platte Landing is named for the original junction of the Platte River,” said alderman Phil Wassmer said. “Every city has a riverfront park and it makes it more interesting if we can tie it to our history.”
Mayor Nan Johnston suggested placing markers in the parks to indicate the meaning behind the names.
She said she had previously believed Platte Landing was named such because it was mandated by Platte County Parks and Recreation to include “Platte” in parkland names.
Wassmer said that the collapse of the original Platte River inlet at the end of the Civil War heralded the end of Parkville’s time as a hub for river trade.
Abel said staff would prefer to leave the names as-is for simplicity, plus renaming the parks could have unforeseen consequences if a forgotten agreement or legal paperwork mandated the names.
Alderman Doug Wylie pointed out that by leaving the names separate it would make locating amenities easier for visitors.
“If someone says they want to go to the dog park, we can tell them ‘that’s in Platte Landing Park,’” he said.
Aldermen opted to leave the names alone and install not only directional signage, but also historical markers where appropriate.