GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — On Tuesday afternoon, OK Conference commissioner Dave Feenstra confirmed to 13 ON YOUR SIDE that it has received letters from six schools asking for permission to leave the conference by June of 2024. Those schools are Allendale, Coopersville, Greenville, Kenowa Hills, Lowell, and Sparta. 13 ON YOUR SIDE was in attendance at a Cedar Springs school board meeting on Monday when they indicated they would also be requesting to leave the conference.
Together, the seven schools are hoping to form a new conference called the River Cities Alliance.
The reasons for wanting to make the move vary by school, but one of the big draws for several of the schools is more favorable geography. Five of the seven schools would drive fewer miles to face their conference opponents in the proposed River Cities Alliance, than they would in the new realignment of the OK Conference set to take effect in the 2024-25 school year.
"It would provide consistency for our athletes in terms of competition, and then it would also be within a close proximity so that we weren't spending as many hours on the road, and also that we weren't driving as many miles and spending as much money on gas in order to get to competitions," Cedar Springs superintendent Scott Smith said at Monday's meeting.
For now, Allendale and Coopersville's travel situations would be slightly less favorable than they would be in the OK Conference. But Allendale superintendent Dr. Garth Cooper said at Monday's meeting that he has reason to believe that will change.
"I anticipate that this conference, at seven schools now, would be 14 to 16 in the next year or two from what we hear from other schools. In which case, we would probably go back to two divisions, and we tighten up that geography some," he said.
Here's how the River Cities Alliance would affect each school's travel in the 2024-25 school year compared to the OK Conference, according to the shortest route available on Google Maps.
Allendale
Allendale is set to remain in the OK Blue in the 2024-25 school year. However, three of their conference opponents are changing. Hamilton, Holland Christian, and Unity Christian will be out of the Blue and they will be replaced by Union, Ottawa Hills, and Grand Rapids Catholic Central. All of their conference road games would be played within 20 miles of Allendale High School, except for Catholic Central whose athletic complex is 28 miles away.
The River Cities Alliance would increase Allendale's travel times. Only two schools, Coopersville and Kenowa Hills, would be within 20 miles. Sparta is about 25 miles away, Lowell is 31 miles away, Cedar Springs is 39 miles away, and Greenville is 50 miles away.
Coopersville
Like Allendale, Coopersville is set to remain in the OK Blue in the 2024-25 school year. Their longest road trip would be Grand Rapids Catholic Central, which is 20 miles away.
The River Cities Alliance would increase Coopersville's travel times. Allendale, Kenowa Hills, and Sparta are all within 20 miles of Coopersville High School. However, Cedar Springs is 31 miles away, Lowell is 33 miles away, and Greenville is 42 miles away.
Cedar Springs
Cedar Springs is set to join the OK Black during the 2024-25 school year. The conference will also include Greenville, Kenowa Hills, Lowell, Mona Shores, Muskegon, and Reeths-Puffer. Northview, Greenville, and Kenowa Hills are all within 25 miles. However, Muskegon is 36 miles away, Reeths-Puffer is 39 miles away, and Mona Shores is 42 miles away.
The River Cities Alliance would cut down travel time slightly for Cedar Springs. Sparta, Greenville, and Kenowa Hills are all within 25 miles. Lowell is 29 miles away, Coopersville is 31 miles away, and Allendale is 39 miles away.
Greenville
Like Cedar Springs, Greenville is set to be a part of the OK Black during the 2024-25 school year. Of the schools on this list, Greenville would have the longest travel times by staying in the OK Conference. Cedar Springs, Lowell, and Northview are within 30 miles. However, Kenowa Hills is 33 miles away, Mona Shores is 63 miles away, Muskegon is 64 miles away, and Reeths-Puffer is 69 miles away.
The River Cities Alliance would still present some long road trips for Greenville, but it would cut down significantly on their travel times. Cedar Springs, Lowell, and Sparta are all within 30 miles. Kenowa Hills is 33 miles away, while Coopersville is 42 miles away, and Allendale is 50 miles away.
Kenowa Hills
Like Cedar Springs and Greenville, Kenowa Hills is scheduled to be a part of the OK Black during the 2024-25 school year. Under that configuration, Northview, Cedar Springs, and Lowell are all within 30 miles. Mona Shores and Muskegon are both 31 miles away. Greenville is 33 miles away and Reeths-Puffer is 36 miles away.
Of the schools planning to form the River Cities Alliance, Kenowa Hills would experience the greatest percent decrease in travel times. Coopersville, Sparta, and Allendale are all within 15 miles. Cedar Spring is 22 miles away, Lowell is 23 miles away, and Greenville is 33 miles away.
Lowell
Like Cedar Springs, Greenville, and Kenowa Hills, Lowell is scheduled to be a part of the OK Black during the 2024-25 school year. Behind Greenville, Lowell would have the second worst travel times out of these seven schools. Northview, Greenville, Kenowa Hills, and Cedar Springs are all within 30 miles. However, Mona Shores and Muskegon are 53 miles away and Reeths-Puffer is 58 miles away.
Under the River Cities Alliance, Greenville, Lowell, Cedar Springs, and Sparta would all be within 30 miles. Allendale is 31 miles away and Coopersville is 32 miles away.
Sparta
Sparta is scheduled to remain in the OK Silver during the 2024-25 school year. All the schools in the OK Silver will remain the same as they are currently. Comstock Park, NorthPointe Christian, Godwin Heights, Kelloggsville, and Calvin Christian are all within 25 miles of Sparta. Their longest trips are 30 miles away to Belding and 44 miles away to Hopkins.
Under the River Cities Alliance, Kenowa Hills, Cedar Springs, Coopersville, Allendale, and Greenville would all be within 25 miles. Lowell would be Sparta's longest trip at 29 miles.
So what's next?
Feenstra told 13 ON YOUR SIDE that according to OK Conference bylaws, members of the OK Conference must vote to approve any schools that want to leave without first giving two years notice. The action requires approval from 75% of members schools to pass. That means 36 OK Conference members must approve the move. Feenstra says ballots will be sent out in the near future.
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