[eric.hanke]

Park chief explains need for extra splash-pad cash

Laurie Wink
The News-Dispatch

MICHIGAN CITY - City Council members questioned Parks Department Superintendent Jan Orlich on Tuesday about a request for an additional $300,000 to complete the Oasis Splash Pad.

Now under development in Washington Park, the splash pad is the first one in La Porte County, Orlich said. Splash pads are designed to shoot jets of water upward from nozzles. They are popular with children, who are not at risk of drowning because the splash pads don't accumulate pools of water.

Orlich inherited the project from the previous park superintendent, Darrell Garbacik. She brought considerable expertise to the task, having operated a splash pad in her previous position as park and recreation director for Wicker Memorial Park in Highland, Ind.

As the Park Board and city officials are finding out, splash pads are more expensive and complicated to construct and operate than originally thought.

"Nobody knew what they were getting into," Orlich said. "They hadn't budgeted for any personnel."

Orlich told the council the additional $300,000 is needed for roofing, fencing, carpentry and an HVAC system. She met with the council's financial committee Thursday to explain the details behind the cost of the new attraction.

The total cost of the Oasis Splash Pad will be about $863,000, Orlich said. Another $53,000 will be spent for a concession operation at the pad and a roving concession trailer for the park. Visitors can purchase hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream - similar to items sold at Washington Park Zoo - as well as bags of ice and souvenir items such as hats, visors and postcards. Concession sales will become a revenue stream for park operations, Orlich said.

An on-site building, designed by architect Gerry Fedorchak, will contain the concession stand, pump house and restrooms. Orlich said park department workers trucked some 650 cubic yards of sand that blew into parking lots during the winter to raise the splash pad site 1 1/2 feet. The added height meant only one lift station was needed, instead of two stations, Orlich said.

Between two and three miles of plumbing will be installed to operate the splash pad, which measures 174 feet long by 72 feet wide. A 5-foot-wide concrete deck will be added around the pad. The entire area will be enclosed by a 6-foot fence.

Orlich emphasized the critical importance of closely monitoring the splash pad for E. coli and other public health threats, such as Cryptosporidium from fecal matter. Outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis have forced health departments in other locations to shut down splash pads. The water-borne illness can cause fever and diarrhea. She will hire a trained mechanical-room operator and part-time assistant to enforce rules and keep the splash pad free from contaminants.

"It's harder than a life guard's job," Orlich said.

The Washington Park splash pad will be open seven days a week. It will operate at two-hour intervals, with a half-hour break in between to allow the pad to be inspected and cleaned. Orlich said between 200 and 250 kids can use the pad at one time. Children under 3 will have to wear swim diapers, which will be available for purchase at the concession stand.

Orlich said admission will be $1 per two-hour session for Michigan City residents, $3 for Indiana residents and $5 for out-of-state visitors. At this point, there's no definite timetable for opening it.

The $300,000 request will appear again before the council for second and third readings before any final action.

When are we going to stop spending money wastefully? I sure wish I could just ask to almost double a project's budget when I run over or make an uneducated decision.



Why not make the spash pad 1/2 the size, or build it in phases if they can't do it for the original budget.

[lovethiscity]

[color=#3366aa][/color]



When are we going to stop spending money wastefully? I sure wish I could just ask to almost double a project's budget when I run over or make an uneducated decision.



Why not make the spash pad 1/2 the size, or build it in phases if they can't do it for the original budget.

"Nobody knew what they were getting into," Orlich said. "They hadn't budgeted for any personnel."

[edgeywood]

"Nobody knew what they were getting into," Orlich said. "They hadn't budgeted for any personnel."

If they didn't know, it was because they chose not to know.

Various members of the Zone 6 MCNeat North End Action Team expressed concerns about the location and maintenance of the site. However, the MC Chamber of Commerce recently took those meeting notes off their web site....imagine that?

In its previous incarnation the Splash Pad was a tennis court that the Park Department demolished through neglect. If they can't maintain a tennis court, do you expect that they could maintain something as complicated as Splash Pad?


From the 8/7/2008 Park Board Meeting:
"Ms. Malewicki asked regarding the splash pad that you are planning, did you know that Beach
Walk has such a splash pad.
Mr. Garbacik answered yes.
Ms. Malewicki asked if he knows of the difficulties they are having there.
Mr. Garbacik stated he is aware of that.
Ms. Malewicki stated she just wanted to let us know in case there is information you needed for
reference
Mr. Garbacik stated he is not inclined to discuss it but he is aware of it and he doesn’t feel or
believe those difficulties affect us whatsoever.


IMO, let the Park Department find the money in their own budget if they want to complete it. The city shouldn't give them another penny. MC would be money ahead if they just filled in that hole.

This is a pattern with the Park Department. They asked for (and received) extra money so they could replace all the golf carts. A few weeks down the road we find out that the gold course is not making money. They will need more money to irrigate Patriot Park. (Nestled in the article about Adams Park improvements, Orlich stated "If we moved all the organized sports to Patriot Park, there would be a need to irrigate it, if we want Patriot to continue to be a premier sports facility.")

The Park Department has been out of control for a long time. They neglect the needs city residents in favor of Patriot Park (the premier sports facility for out of towners and bar leagues), the Splash Pad (why wasn't a scaled down version of this located in one of the neighborhood parks so local kids could walk to it?), and various proposals for restaurants, hotels, and new lakefront offices.

I know I'm rambling, but one more point....Bob McKee pushed all this stuff when he was Park Board President. Now that he is City Council President, the agenda will continue.

[Michelle]

Why not make the spash pad 1/2 the size, or build it in phases if they can't do it for the original budget.

I'm guessing that cutting the size of the splash pad in half wouldn't actually cut the budget for it in half--economies of scale and all that. I think the splash pad is a good dea, but I was shocked that the city was going through with it in this economy. So I'm with you on that.

[Homey]

Makes you go hmmmmm! We put our confidence in the leaders hoping they take us in the right direction. Who dropped the ball on this? Where was the planning including the entire scope of this project? I guess you could start at the top, right?

If most of us screwed up involving this much cash, we'd be fired in a heartbeat!

[Southsider2k12]

So for the cost of something we don't need, and something that isn't going to directly generate tax revenue for Michigan City we are projecting to spend almost a million dollars because no one was smart enough to think about the people we needed to run the place? Brilliant. Remember this on election day. How much street could we have paved, sidewalk could we have laid, people could we have hired, etc? Nope, we have a splash pad that will provide nothing to the community, except for maybe two months a year, and only if they can afford to go. It really makes me wonder about the people in charge here.

[eric.hanke]

The City Council approved the additional $300k in an 8-1 vote Tuesday night.


Third Ward Councilman Ron Meer was the lone dissenter.