West Liberty’s Kimberly Park will finally get its playground.
That’s the conclusion of City Parks & Recreation Director Nick Heath Tuesday evening after the West Liberty City Council decided at their regular meeting to spend an additional $35,810 to build the $225,000 playground in the park.
“We’re at a point where we need to decide if we’re going to host a community build or spend $35,000 for a professional build,” Heath told the council last week. He said a community build, utilizing volunteers and organizations, would take place on weekends and weeknights and would likely take weeks while a professional build, by Cunningham Recreation which sold the equipment, would begin July 20 and would take just three to five days.
Heath said it’s nice to see something new happening in the community and said it could be uplifting for the community stuck in the COVID-19 pandemic and health regulations.
The director said there are also 108 holes to be drilled for the equipment installation, something he would have to have contracted locally, which would have added to the cost. The drilling, however, is part of the installation if done professionally.
Mayor Robert Hartman said he’d love to see 100 volunteers come and put the playground together, but noted it doesn’t make sense when the city has concerns over the spread of the virus, including failing to open the city pool this year in the park.
The playground will be made available for families, like every other playground in the community. Parents or guardians are being asked to wipe surfaces and disinfect hands after use. Parks & Recreation decided to move forward with fundraising for the playground in 2018 including grant writing and an engraved brick promotion, setting a goal of $200,000.
By June 2019, volunteers had raised $225,000 and the department looked at nine different designs from three different companies.
In June, All-American Concrete of West Liberty graded the area and completed groundwork for the project. Heath said “unbeknownst to staff, the community build was much more complex than originally envisioned,” contractors noting it would require 10-15 volunteers each day. Heath said he only had four committed volunteers, figuring the work could take as long as two months.
The city will also avoid liability issues if a professional completes the project.
Heath said because of the additional expense, planned improvements for Friendship Park on the south end of the city would be delayed. The city had planned a major project at that park in the budget process.
The council approved moving forward on the project, taking Heath’s recommendation.