Overland Park City Council Approves Long-Term Parks and Recreation Plan Despite Resident Opposition to Aquatic Facilities
The Overland Park City Council has approved 'Playbook OP,' a comprehensive 10-year plan for the city's parks and recreation system. This approval occurred despite significant pushback from residents and some council members regarding the aquatic facilities portion of the plan. The plan includes renovating or replacing existing regional pools like Young’s Pool and Tomahawk Ridge Aquatic Center, and building new water play features. However, it also entails closing Stonegate Pool at the end of its useful life and constructing a new water park in south Overland Park within the next decade. Council members Drew Mitrisin and Melissa Cheatham, representing Ward 2, voiced concerns that the plan disregards taxpayer preferences for more neighborhood pools, particularly in north Overland Park, and that it removes pool access for residents in that area. A city survey indicated that 67% of taxpayers preferred more neighborhood pools and supported renovating existing regional pools, developing two new neighborhood pool...
