Platte County schools, municipalities and other non-profit organizations will receive more than $200,000 in parks outreach grant funding this year.
Director of Parks and Recreation Daniel Erickson announced the grant offerings at the Monday, March 21 meeting of the Platte County Commission, held at the Platte County Resource Center in Kansas City.
Grants, which are funded through the county’s dedicated parks and recreation sales tax, will be offered to the following:
Dearborn Betterment Committee, Dearborn veterans memorial, $7,518
Line Creek Elementary School, playground renovation, $26,364
City of Parkville, riverfront park lighting, $17,350
Parkville Development Corporation, downtown restrooms, $40,000
City of Riverside, linear trail project, $30,000
Weatherby Lake Park Board, inclusive playground equipment, $14,374
City of Camden Point, veterans memorial and flag pole replacement, $8,285
Midwest Adaptive Sports, storage, $4,500
Southern Platte County Athletic Association, soccer goals, $10,000
Weston Community Theatre, portable microphone system, $10,000
Platte County Historical Society, Ben Ferrel Museum restoration, $10,173
Weston Historical Museum, exploring Weston’s African American history, $34,241
Platte City Friends of the Arts, jazz appreciation month concert, $1,019
Also at the meeting, commissioners approved a cooperative purchase agreement for $13,000 for the Houston K9 Academy for a new police dog.
Ajax, one of two canine officers with the Platte County Sheriff’s Office, has a medical problem that will force his retirement. His handler, Jessica Harrison, will adopt Ajax and take on another canine partner through the program.
Ajax and Aries, the county’s other canine officer, came to the sheriff’s office in 2019 after the medical retirement of canine officer Diago.
Erickson also presented a request for bids for demolition of a dangerous outbuilding near the Dorothy Day Cabin at the Green Hills of Platte Wildlife Preserve. The building was built in the 1970s or 1980s and thus is not part of the historic cabin. The roof, which is easily accessible, is unsafe and in danger of collapse. The old shed has not been used for some time, even for storage, so county officials believe removal is the best option.
“The concern is that we get some adventurous kids who want to climb on that and it’s about to fall in,” Erickson said.
Removal of the “attractive nuisance” will open up options to offer more programming at the site without the safety concern, he said.
District commissioner Joe Vanover, who has sought input on potential uses for the park, praised the move as progress toward making the area more accessible to visitors and safer for children’s programming.