Hawk Ridge Park, located at 701 Johnston Parkway in Raymore, has completed renovations including adding several amenities that are accessible to people of all abilities, making it an inclusive park, the first of its kind in the state of Missouri.
Renovations of the 79-acre park include all ADA-compliant features such as a shelter house with four family restrooms, a fishing dock and jetty on Johnston Lake, a paved walking trail around the lake, additional restrooms on the south side of the park and expanded parking on both ends of the park.
“To be able to have an entire park that qualifies as inclusive is very important to us,” said Raymore Parks and Recreation director, Nathan Musteen.
The updated park also includes a new ampitheather with an integrated lawn seating capacity of 1,500-2,000. The120x30 ft stage offers easy, no-step access on each side via gentle sloping ground to concrete.
The fishing dock and jetty are ADA compliant and grant access for fishing channel catfish, bass, blue gill, crappie and trout, all stocked by the Missouri Department of Conservation.
The shelter house features two separate areas with picnic tables, a grill and fireplace and four ADA family restrooms. The paved walking trail wraps around the lake and offers access points to each of the park’s new features.
“Making sure that all people, regardless of any mobility challenges they may have, can easily fish from our new ADA dock and jetty, take the paved trail all the way around the lake and enjoy our amphitheater– whether they’re in the audience or on stage– is the right thing to do,” added Musteen.
The City of Raymore plans to continue the park's expansion and has partnered with Unlimited Play, a St. Louis-based, not-for-profit organization, to bring an inclusive playground to Hawk Ridge Park.
With smooth-surfacing ramps from bottom to top and accessible play equipment, the custom-built playground will give children with disabilities or critical illnesses the same opportunities for play, exercise and social interactions as any other child. The playground will also make it possible for adults who have lost their ability to climb, swing or walk to play alongside their children or grandchildren.
Fundraising efforts are currently underway for the new playground. To learn more about supporting Hawk’s Nest, please visit raymore.com/HawksNest. Donations are tax-deductible through the City’s 501(c)3 organization, the Raymore Community Foundation.
B. Dean Construction served as the GC on the project along with landscape architect, Confluence Company, Inc., SFS Architecture, Stand Structural Engineering Inc. and Henderson Engineers.
The City of Raymore is holding a ribbon cutting event at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22nd to celebrate the grand opening of Hawk Ridge Park’s newest amenities.