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Jimmy Fitzner
Community Contributor
On Saturday December 13th, elected officials, corporate sponsors, and youth soccer teams gathered for a ribbon-cutting to mark the opening of the new Visa Street Soccer Park at the 9th & Van Brunt Athletic Fields. This addition marks the latest investment into the park which saw the completion of $3 million dollars worth of renovations paid for with GO Bonds in July.
This event included remarks from Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, United States congressman Fourth District Mark Alford, City Manager Mario Vasquez, Missouri House Speaker Jon Patterson, and representatives from funding organizations Visa, Bank of America and Street Soccer USA (SSUSA).
A smile beamed from the face of Reginald Francois, Senior Recreation Director with KC Parks and Rec, as he looked across the crowd. When asked what it means to him that Bank of America, Visa, and Street Soccer USA have teamed up with Kansas City to make this project a reality, he immediately responds, “The future is now”.
Francois has coordinated youth programs for kids of all ages at this park long before these upgrades; he knows the challenges of playing on fields that many have called inadequate for organized youth soccer. He’s also heard from the community that adult rec leagues were crowding out kids and adds that this addition will provide space for kids in Northeast to hone their soccer skills for years to come.
He isn’t the only one who notices the difference either; Jennifer Ruiz and Anthony Pleitez live in the area and braved below-freezing temps to watch the ribbon-cutting. Ruiz recalled playing on these fields in high school, lamenting that they were not well maintained and that the restrooms were in poor shape. Now, she and Pleitez both see this as not merely a playing field but an outlet for everyone of all ages in the neighborhood. Pleitez was impressed that funding from organizations outside of Kansas City had found its way into this neighborhood park, and was happy to see City officials, including Mayor Quinton Lucas and City Manager Mario Vasquez, give in-person attention to Saturday’s event.
Alexis Rivera, club president for youth club Pantera FC, grew up in Northeast and was excited about the possibilities for future teams and kids growing up here now. Rivera added that he knows kids who come here after school and stay until dark, and feels confident that outlets like this are protective factors in the lives of kids who grow up in so-called underserved communities.
“Now it’s up to us to care for it,” Rivera insisted. “Kids see that and they’ll care for it too,” adding that his club picks up trash and plastic bottles around the park to preserve its fresh appeal.
Lawrence Cann and his brother Rob, who co-founded Street Soccer USA and spearheaded the initiative to revitalize parks into youth soccer destinations in 26 US cities by the 2026 World Cup, echoed the sentiment of neighborhood residents, saying this is an opportunity for kids in Northeast to get easy access to soccer. The lack of access for generations past was also not lost on Cann, mentioning what once occupied the southeast corner of 9th & Van Brunt.
“We know the history of this park,” said Cann. “Being an old transit center and an underutilized space, it has become an incredible place for the community to come together”.
Pam Kramer, CEO of KC2026, the organization responsible for making the World Cup soccer tournament a success in Kansas City next year, made sure to denote the importance of improvements for Kansas CIty kids in light of the incoming spectacle, telling the crowd, “Our Board of Directors has told us we need to think about World Cup differently; it needs to create sustained and long-term impact on the people who live here”.
As for the immediate future, Reginald Francois is ready to roll. He’s heading up a tournament in March at the park for ages 4-6 (boys and girls) and will host what he called “The People’s Tournament” in April for boys and girls ages 8-16. Go to kcparks.org or email Reginald Francois at Reginald.Francois@kcmo.org for more information.
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