'Getting kids off screens': Spokane County shows off renewed Plantes Ferry Sports Complex

A new soccer venue is ready for competition just as the FIFA World Cup arrives in Washington.

Instead of global superstars, however, the recently redone pitch will soon be run across by panting elementary and middle school athletes.

Spokane County held a ribbon-cutting Wednesday at Plantes Ferry Sports Complex to mark the end of a long-running project to modernize the park's sporting facilities.

Tucked between Wellesley Avenue and the Spokane River in the Spokane Valley, the park is home to 12 soccer fields, five softball and baseball diamonds, playgrounds and picnic shelters. The park hosts a number of youth games, tournaments and races year-round, providing an economic bump to the region.

The county spent $8.3 million, in addition to a $970,000 state grant, to replace the three regulation-sized fields at the center with artificial turf, to expand parking and to install lights on the turf fields. Less noticeable improvements include updates to sewer and stormwater drainage, the addition of pedestrian paths and new fencing.

Commissioner Josh Kerns, who represents the district the park is in, said the demand for sporting facilities continues to grow as the county's population does. The park will continue to be a premiere venue for athletes near and far that helps satisfy that demand, he said.

"I think we can all agree that this project has exceeded expectations," Kerns said.

The youth soccer league Spokane Rapids and Spokane Indians Youth Baseball and Softball will assist the county with maintenance on the improved park. Kelsy Ross, executive director of Spokane Rapids, said she looks forward to seeing the facility used "for generations to come." More than 2,500 Inland Northwest residents participate in the youth soccer league each year.

"This improvement is truly a game changer for the Spokane soccer community," Ross said, "and I'm deeply proud of what we've accomplished together, and even more excited to see what's ahead for Plantes."

Efforts to improve the park have been underway for more than a decade, said Spokane County Parks, Recreation and Golf Director Doug Chase.

The new lights for the turf fields are a point of pride for Chase; they are "dark sky compliant," which means they do not cast a glow above or beyond the fields below.

"The LED field lighting was designed and installed to protect the night sky and our neighbors from light pollution," Chase said. "So in other words, you're going to see the light on the field and not directly next to it."

State Senator Marcus Riccelli, who helped advocate for state funding for the project, said he's a big fan of the sport. He looks forward to using the additional parking spaces, as a father to some athletes, as a youth coach and as a youth referee. For years, cars have spilled onto surrounding roadways during high-traffic weekends.

Riccelli said he was happy to support a project that benefits multiple sports, economies and the health of children throughout the region.

"We also have an obesity and diabetes epidemic amongst our youth," Riccelli said. "Healthy, active play, getting kids off screens, this is part of that."

Chase noted the recently completed improvements are the first phase of a suite of planned upgrades still to come.

"We have been talking about this for years; it's so exciting," Chase said. "A little persistence, a little bit of time, can go a long way."

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