The Arnold City Council has agreed to spend $116,000 to buy 73.9 acres near Arnold City Park from the Jefferson County Youth Association. The purchase, which is expected to be complete by May 17, will allow the city to expand the park and the JCYA to offer youngsters a chance to play football for free next season.
The JCYA has used the property for a practice field, and after the sale is complete, the city will allow the organization to keep using it for that purpose, for $1 a year. When the JCYA isn’t practicing there, though, the city will be able to use it for parking, City Administrator Bryan Richison said.
The city often holds festivals and other events at Arnold City Park, and the field would provide another 100 parking spaces, he said.
“Parking is always an issue (during those events). To be able to have that parking lot, will greatly assist us,” Richison said.
He said he doesn’t think the city will pave the lot anytime soon, but it may bring in additional rock for a parking area.
The field itself also may need to be cleaned up, Richison said.
“I understand the field is kind of rocky. We want to get it in as good of shape as possible and available to use,” he said.
Richison said the property is basically just a grass field and will allow the city to add 60-plus acres of forested wetlands to its inventory of properties.
He said the wetlands would not include trails but people could walk through the area.
The city also owns the property across Jeffco Boulevard from Arnold City Park where the Jefferson County Youth Association has its playing field. The organization leases that property from the city for $1 a year as well.
Free football
For the JCYA, the sale of the property will mean expanded opportunities for kids, said Jeremy Gibson, president of the organization.
“The mortgage (on that property) has kept us from doing some positive things for the football and cheerleading programs. Now, the city can do positive things with that property, and the sale has allowed us to give free football to youth (this year),” Gibson said.
He said the JCYA will allow children in grades two through eight to play football for free next fall. Usually the cost to play football is $225 a child, and then the family is asked to participate in fundraisers to cover another $125 for the child’s uniform.
With the impending sale of the property, though, the JCYA board of directors decided to cover that cost for up to 300 players for one year, Gibson said.
He said returning players will have the first opportunity, but there should be about 130 free spots that will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis.
“Once we’ve done this to introduce kids to the sport this year, then next year the cost will be about $150 to $175 per child,” Gibson said. “It will be enough to cover the refurbishing of the equipment.”
Registration for the next season begins May 20.
Gibson said the free year of football will give kids who never had the chance to play because of the cost the opportunity to try it out. “Taking away the big mortgage burden enables us to turn around and give back to the kids,” he said.
The JCYA used money from a recent grant from USA football and some insurance money left over from last year’s flood to purchase uniforms that should last five years, which also is allowing the league to lower the cost for families, Gibson said.
The JCYA has a cheerleading program, too, and the sale of the property will allow the organization to buy new equipment, including tumble practice mats, for that program.
The cost, for cheerleaders, however, will remain the same, at $120 per a child, Gibson said.
He said the JCYA needs more cheerleading coaches.
The football program, which operates under the auspices of the Gateway Football League, enrolls children from around Jefferson County.
Gibson said he hopes the reduced cost will allow the league to show off just how far Jefferson County youth football has come. He said coaches are certified and children’s safety is imperative.
“The days of hard-nose, intense hitting are gone, and players are taught hawk tackling like in wrestling, which targets the thigh area and not from the waist up,” Gibson said. “We want to keep the sport safe and accessible for everyone,” he said.
Gibson said many of the program’s players go on to play football at Fox and Seckman high schools.
The JCYA purchased the nearly 74 acres 12 years ago so it would have a place for football players and cheerleaders to practice.
“Due to some restrictions, we were forced to purchase more than the area of the practice field,” Gibson said.
Richison said all 74 acres is designated as forested wetlands, and for every 1 acre that is developed another 4 acres must be “land banked” and protected.
The property consists of three parcels – a 15.59-acre parcel, another 33.14-acre one and a 25.18-acre parcel. The practice field is on the smallest parcel, but all three must be purchased together to ensure the four-to-one ratio, Richison said.
The development of the practice field was permitted through Army Corps of Engineers.
“Most of the property is untouchable and must stay in its untouched pristine condition,” Richison said.