Little hoopla

Thirteen-year-old Tanisha Peal steadies her shot at the foul line. Behind her, Tia Kemp, 9, spins head over heels through cartwheels on the gym floor. In the corner, kids play cards.

Tanisha fires her shot over the head of city recreation worker Erick Flemming and into the hoop. Because of low attendance, it was a game of one-on-one.

The Armory Sports & Community Center’s extended youth hours on Saturdays this summer have had low attendance for the first two nights of the program, which organizers attribute to the lack of advertising.

The program’s first night on June 25 only attracted four kids. Last Saturday, the second night, the few kids in attendance came because their parents or grandparents were workers in the program.

Supervisor Camren Cross said that the first night of the program was a little “thrown together.”

“I think once we get the word out in advance to teenagers, things will pick up,” he said.

The program was proposed by City Council members Almeta Crayton and Jim Loveless after the Armory’s budget was set for the year. The council gave the Columbia Parks and Recreation Department an additional $3,010 to hold extended hours for youth activities on Saturdays through August 20, except for July 30 when the Armory will host part of the Show-Me State Games. The money will pay for staff members and overtime for two police officers to be on-site.

Crayton said the problem was a lack of promotion.

“The kids haven’t been told. How are they supposed to know if you don’t advertise?” Crayton said.

Tammy Miller, spokesperson for the department, said they are stepping up efforts to get the word out about the extended hours.

“We’re giving out flyers at moonlight basketball and around the community, and by the end of the summer we hope to have a larger crowd,” Miller said.

Cross said he would like to see the program gain the popularity of moonlight basketball games hosted by the department at Douglass Park. Moonlight basketball attracts as many as 200 players and spectators a night, Cross said.

While moonlight basketball is for adults as well as kids, he wants youth nights at the Armory to offer a safe alternative for kids looking for something to do.

“We want to make a positive, supervised environment where kids can have fun, in comparison to being out on the streets,” Cross said. “Hopefully it will help lower crime rates. There have been several shootings lately and there’s no denying some were teenagers.”

Columbia police Officer Jeff Westbrook, who was on duty at the Armory on the second night of the program, said the police’s main duty will be to make sure things are peaceful, but the program may also offer a chance for officers to interact with kids.

Crayton said she stands by the program.

“You need somewhere for them to go,” Crayton said. “If they advertise it, the kids will come.”

Missourian staff writer Ikuru Kuwajima contributed to this report.