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Missouri Water Park: “We aren’t comfortable with you people, ya birthday cancelled”

Pancho

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Dahobbs

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Article with more details. 

https://www.kmbc.com/article/lees-summit-parks-and-rec-apologizes-to-family-after-birthday-park-at-waterpark-canceled/40851983#

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Lee's Summit Parks and Rec apologizes to family after birthday party at waterpark canceled

The Lee's Summit Parks and Recreation Department is out with an apology after a family's birthday party was canceled at the Summit Waves waterpark.

The Parks and Recreation Department said it has completed its internal review of Saturday's event, releasing a statement noting that mistakes were made.

That statement comes after the mayor, Parks and Recreation Department administrator and board chair held a meeting at city hall Tuesday afternoon.

The Parks and Recreation Department also released a video of the incident.

Chris Evans paid for a party for his 17-year-old son Isaiah's birthday that was supposed to be held Saturday night at the Summit Waves waterpark.

But the Parks and Recreation Department's investigation states as part of that contract, there was to be no social media advertising of the party because there was the potential for too many people to show up and staff not able to handle the party safely.

But the Parks and Recreation Department's review found that the organization made mistakes with the rental process as well as miscommunication.

The review also found Summit Waves' staff used inappropriate and insensitive language with Evans, and there was also an inappropriate social media post from one of the waterpark's lifeguards.

Earlier Tuesday, Chris Evans said he, his family and the Black teens who were going to attend a party, which never took place, were all victims of racial profiling.

"There is no legitimate reason why the party was canceled. Instead, it appears it was canceled simply because the park staff were uncomfortable with a group of Black teenagers having a pool party to enjoy the end of the summer," Evans said.

Here's the full statement released by Lee's Summit Parks and Recreation:

"Lee's Summit Parks and Recreation (LSPR) has completed an internal review of the cancellation of a private event scheduled for August 6. The review identified missed processes and miscommunication that led to the cancellation. A sincere apology is owed to the Evans family and our Lee’s Summit community. LSPR strives to be a respectful and inclusive organization where all members of our community feel welcome and appreciated. Inappropriate language, social media posts and behavior are not acceptable and will not be tolerated.

"The following is a summary of our investigation. On July 8, the renting party booked Summit Waves for a teen birthday party scheduled for Saturday, August 6 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. and indicated 250 attendees. According to the rental forms, the event would not be publicized via social media, and fees would not be charged to attend the event. It has been our experience, that social media marketing and/or ticket sales have the potential to increase event attendance beyond the number initially stated and can result in insufficient staffing and security. The “no” answers provided on the form by the booking party did not create concerns.

"The rental form indicated that 10 - 15 chaperones would be in attendance and per the rental form, security consisting of officers from the Lee’s Summit Police Department or Jackson County Sheriff’s office is required. The cost of security is paid by the rental party but is arranged and booked by LSPR. Through our investigation, LSPR found that staff failed to arrange security for the event.

"On the evening of Thursday, August 4, Summit Waves staff was made aware of a social media post advertising an event called “Splash Blast 2” from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Summit Waves. On the morning of Friday, August 5, Summit Waves staff called the renting party, left a message inquiring about the social media post, and requested a return call. LSPR did not receive a return call. On Saturday, August 6, Summit Waves staff received approximately 15 calls from parents with questions (cost, hours, parent attendance, etc.) about “Splash Blast 2” and the safety of the event. Summit Waves staff called the renting party two additional times on August 6 to address concerns.

"LSPR made the decision to cancel the event at 5 p.m. due to the inability to contact the renting party. Safety pertaining to the anticipated crowd size and the potential impact it might have on party guests and the staff was the sole reason for the cancellation.

"The renting party returned the phone call to Summit Waves staff at approximately 5:30 pm. They were notified at that time of the cancellation and that LSPR would provide a full refund. The renting party arrived around 6:15 pm at which time LSPR staff reiterated the event was canceled. Staff and police stayed on-site until the crowd dispersed at approximately 8 p.m. Lee’s Summit Police estimated the crowd to be approximately 500 people between 7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

"On Sunday, August 7, LSPR was made aware of a disturbing social media post made by a part-time Summit Waves lifeguard. At approximately 10 a.m. on Monday, August 8, the administrator of Parks and Recreation contacted the renting party and apologized for the poor experience the family received on Saturday night. In addition, the administrator apologized for the inappropriate and insensitive language used by staff including the social media post and advised that appropriate actions would be taken with staff. The administrator identified the internal processes that broke down and reassured the renting party that the rental cancellation was due solely to safety issues associated with potential crowd size. A refund was completed that afternoon and an offer was made to cover any additional expenses associated with the rental beyond the rental fee. The administrator and the rental party agreed to a follow-up phone call on Wednesday, August 10 to continue discussions.

"LSPR intends to complete a comprehensive review of the rental process, including communication. LSPR will also enhance training to align with the City’s diversity and inclusion efforts. LSPR is committed to serving all people in our community and providing exceptional parks and recreation experiences for everyone."

 

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Pancho

Pancho 44879

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22 minutes ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

i'm always amazed at the composure you see from kids when they're being treated like sub-humans.

if that was me and my white friends being shown 1/100th that level of contempt from that bitch it would have gotten very ugly.

They weren’t going hood because they’ve seen and been in those situations before—they would have been arrested and/or killed and THEN questions might have been asked. 

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TKthunder2

TKthunder2 4995

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https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article264300966.html
 

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Lee’s Summit officials defend canceling Black teen’s birthday party at city water park

By Robert A. Cronkleton

Updated August 09, 2022 12:48 PM

This image is taken from a video posted to Tik Tok, captured when Lee’s Summit officials turned away guests attending a Black teen’s birthday party at Summit Waves aquatic facility. City officials defended canceling the event, saying 500 teens arrived, about twice the number planned. TikTok

Update: On Tuesday, Chris Evans spoke at a news conference about the incident at Summit Waves. He said his family was discriminated against and he disputed some of the explanations offered by city officials below. That story is here. 

Lee’s Summit officials on Monday defended canceling a Black teenager’s birthday party over the weekend, saying about 500 teens, about twice the number planned, showed up at the Summit Waves Aquatic Facility, according to a news release.

The Lee’s Summit Parks and Recreation canceled the party rental for Saturday evening after it became aware of social media posts advertising the event, according to a press release from Joe Snook, administrator of the department.

“This raised serious concerns about the safety of party guests and the possibility the event would grow beyond the capacity of staff,” according to the release.

The parks and recreation department was unable to reach the family in advance of the event to discuss safety concerns, according to news release. The only recourse was to cancel the event, Snook said. 

Chris Evans, the teen’s father, declined to comment Monday afternoon, referring calls to his attorney. The attorney could not immediately be reached. 

A social media post from Saturday evening shows Evans talking to a park official after being informed the party was being canceled. 

In the video, Evans asks why park staff were uncomfortable. One person on the recording says, “because we are Black.”

The parks and recreation department declined to comment on the claims that the Evans party was denied entry because of racism, saying the press release contained all the information that they were releasing at this time.

Despite the cancellation, about 500 teens arrived in Summit Waves parking lot, according to the news release.

Among its rental options, the aquatic center offers after-hour party rentals of its entire facility for various sized groups — small groups of 100 or less guests, medium groups of 100-250 guests and large groups of 251-1,400 guests, according to its website. 

This story was originally published  August 8, 2022 3:40 PM.

Looks like they booked (and the park staffed) for 250 and over 500 showed even after it was canceled.

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sasquatch69

sasquatch69 603

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16 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article264300966.html
 

Looks like they booked (and the park staffed) for 250 and over 500 showed even after it was canceled.

Yes, and someone (unknown if the family) advertised it on social media in violation of terms of rental contract.

Lots of issues at play here, but what it boils down to is the water  park totally mishandled the situation in a way that ultimately reflects very badly on them. 

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StruggleBus

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17 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article264300966.html
 

Looks like they booked (and the park staffed) for 250 and over 500 showed even after it was canceled.

Seems like a legit reason if true. However, they probably should have told them that, not that they just “weren’t comfortable.” 

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TKthunder2

TKthunder2 4995

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1 minute ago, StruggleBus said:

Seems like a legit reason if true. However, they probably should have told them that, not that they just “weren’t comfortable.” 

Yep IF true (early reporting is often very one sided).

2 minutes ago, sasquatch69 said:

Yes, and someone (unknown if the family) advertised it on social media in violation of terms of rental contract.

Lots of issues at play here, but what it boils down to is the water  park totally mishandled the situation in a way that ultimately reflects very badly on them. 

Yep, even if you look at it from the water park’s POV, they still fucked up in how they handled the situation.

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22 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

I think what they really mean is advertising, and ticket sales.  Who the fuck sells tickets to their birthday party?

Ok it was Halloween, but same damned concept.

MillerVon_72.png

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gsoda3

gsoda3 3274

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What exactly did parks and rec say? I haven't seen anything.

Also most cities require a specific ratio of officers to guests so you can't leave 250 outside the gates just milling around on premise without police. That's assuming they even had LE on hand for the guests inside the pool.

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2 hours ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

There is no racism in America.

- Johnny Sack

When shit doesn't go a certain way, it's always racism.

- a metric shit-ton of folks on this board.

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Humble Beast

Humble Beast 258

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This entire story reeks of bullshit. 
 

“because you’re not comfortable” 

yeah you have an extra 250 people than expected. 
 

2 hours ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Why couldn’t they tell them to pick 250 to let in, and leave the remainder outside the park?

I don’t think they pay the ticket scanners enough to make it worthwhile for that hazard duty. You volunteering?

Edited by Humble Beast
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Pato del Muerto

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6 minutes ago, Humble Beast said:

This entire story reeks of bullshit. 
 

“because you’re not comfortable” 

yeah you have an extra 250 people than expected. 
 

I don’t think they pay the ticket scanners enough to make it worthwhile for that hazard duty. You volunteering?

You are assuming a dangerous situation because why?

tell the family to pick their guests. They don’t know 250 people. You let the rest know they won’t gain entrance.  
 

if a mob mentality takes over, use the security you have and call more cops. 
 

most of those people just wanted something to do with their friends. They’ll just go do something else. 

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Cornpop

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27 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

You are assuming a dangerous situation because why?

tell the family to pick their guests. They don’t know 250 people. You let the rest know they won’t gain entrance.  
 

if a mob mentality takes over, use the security you have and call more cops. 
 

most of those people just wanted something to do with their friends. They’ll just go do something else. 

Or....just cancel it

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gmr548

gmr548 16590

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4 hours ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

i'm always amazed at the composure you see from kids when they're being treated like sub-humans.

if that was me and my white friends being shown 1/100th that level of contempt from that bitch it would have gotten very ugly.

There was a cop present. They would have been shot had they displayed anger towards a white woman.

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FartingMonk

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29 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

You are assuming a dangerous situation because why?

tell the family to pick their guests. They don’t know 250 people. You let the rest know they won’t gain entrance.  
 

if a mob mentality takes over, use the security you have and call more cops. 
 

most of those people just wanted something to do with their friends. They’ll just go do something else. 

Yeah.  I would rather have an event cancelled than a group of unruly teens get beaten by cops.  

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FartingMonk

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7 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

If they were going to be unruly if you let 250 in, wouldn’t they be as much so when you let zero in?

Nah.  Because you still probably had parents there and taking their kids away once they found out the event was cancelled.  It's when you have an event going on and the mentality of standing in line for hours with no adult supervision saying F this.  I'm coming in no matter what mentality is where things get out of hand.  They knew nothing was going on behind the gates.  

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956 Worldwide

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6 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

I think what they really mean is advertising, and ticket sales.  Who the fuck sells tickets to their birthday party?

The bottom line, I wanna buy back your family's love with these fucking dope passes to Congo Canyon Resort. . . What do you say, Dustin? Let's put aside our differences. Take leaks in the lazy river. Take our shirts off and slide down water slides. 

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FartingMonk

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Ok.  Now that I did a little more digging.  I can see why they cancelled the party.  The kid is an influencer.  He had this party last year for his birthday.  He did indeed advertise on his tik tok and other social media sites as this was Splash Bash 2.  Not racism.  They just didn't want shit to get out of hand.

 

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