By LESLIE COLLINS
Northeast News
October 24, 2012 

Houses in the Scarritt Renaissance neighborhood will soon be transformed into spooktacular creations.

Thirteen homes have already signed up to participate in this year’s Scare-It Halloween and Scare-It Halloween Chair Amanda Stinger said she expects at least seven more houses to sign up.

Past house decor has centered around themes like the Toy Story, Wizard of Oz, a pirate ship, among others.

Scarritt resident Jeff Zumsteg said this year his house will resemble a “Moscow Circus,” complete with a circus tent and volunteers dressed as clowns, acrobats, jugglers and other circus acts.

In addition to trick-or-treating at “safe houses,” the event will include four inflatables, zombies from Kansas City Zombie Walk for Hunger and the Kansas City Museum’s Fairy Princess Costume Contest.

The event is free and road closures will include North Gladstone Boulevard and Windsor to Gladstone Boulevard and Mersington.

Kansas City’s Office of Emergency Management will ensure safe street closures and the Kansas City Police Department will also be on site, she said.

“We’ve never had an issue with crime or kids getting hurt in any way,” Stinger said.

Scare-It Halloween will be held on Oct. 31 from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. It will span four blocks, starting at the Kansas City Museum, 3218 Gladstone Blvd., and continuing to Gladstone Boulevard and Mersington.

Past years have averaged 7,500 children, Stinger said.

“It’s a great positive event that happens in our neighborhood that brings people not only from our neighborhood but from all over the city to Historic Northeast,” she said. “From what I understand, it’s the biggest Halloween event in the city. Seventy-five hundred kids – that’s a pretty huge event.”