The Gans Creek Recreation Area is a 320-acre public park in Columbia,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, United States. Its name derives from Gans Creek, which flows through the property. It borders the

Rock Bridge Memorial State Park Rock Bridge Memorial State Park is a geological preserve and public recreation area encompassing , south of Columbia in Boone County, Missouri off of Missouri Route 163. The park is home to 12 caves. The state park is noted for its excell ...

on its western edge. The park is owned by the City of Columbia and operated by the Columbia Department of Parks and Recreation.

History

The Gans Creek Recreation Area was acquired by the City of Columbia on September 14, 2007 for $8 million. It was named on July 21, 2008. The area purchased was forest and former pasture land, including a home. The limestone bedrock has formed

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

topography, most notably Elbow Cave. On October 7, 2013, the city council of Columbia approved the development of 50-acres to build a park on the property. On May 3, 2010 the city council approved a plan to build seven multipurpose fields, athletic fields for baseball and softball, a dog park, and a playground, along with other amenities. By 2016, only five multipurpose fields had been constructed. Talks of building a cross country complex within Columbia occurred in the 2000s and the Gans Creek Recreation Area was selected as the site. Construction of the complex began in 2018.

Activities

Cross country

The Gans Creek Recreation Area holds the Gans Creek Cross Country Course. It features a 500-meter straightaway at the start and two different sized loops, one 2 km and the other 3 km. The

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

uses the track as its home cross country course.

Championships

The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA), chose to move its cross country state championship meet to Gans Creek beginning in 2019. The high school state course had previously been located at Oak Hills Golf Center, in

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the principa ...

, since 1982. The course will host the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships.

Other

Gans Creek Recreation Area has five multipurpose fields that can be used for soccer, lacrosse, or

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References

External links

Gans Creek Recreation Area
Columbia Parks and Recreation {{Columbia, Missouri Parks in Columbia, Missouri Landforms of Boone County, Missouri Protected areas of Boone County, Missouri Sports venues in Columbia, Missouri Missouri Tigers cross country Cross country running courses in Missouri Parks in Missouri