North Battleford city council approved the plan to rehabilitate the old fountain area of Central Park this week. A grant in the amount of $89,000 will cover all the costs for the project, including demolition and disposal of the materials from the fountain, at no cost to the City.
The rehabilitation will not include a water feature, which has resulted in a savings of $12,000 from original estimates.
Director of Economic Development Jennifer Niesink presented plans received from Downtown North Battleford, the city's business improvement district organization headed by executive director Lisa Kissick.
"They do address the colours we had looked at to coincide with the rest of downtown," said Niesink. "We still have some questions around drainage and a few other things but they have addressed some of the concerns from the initial meetings that we've had."
She added, "I think they are planning on going forward in August."
Although the original proposal was titled a "splash park," Councillor Greg Lightfoot said water service to the fountain was turned off when a local improvement project on 101st Street's water main was done.
"[It] wasn't reconnected at that point in time," said Lightfoot. "We are unable to do any fountain work in there, but this is a nice alternative to the fountain."
Mayor Ian Hamilton added, "Nor would we want a water feature there for other reasons, liability issues, and that sort of thing as well."
He said there had been discussion on the possibility of flooding the area in winter for skating, but Niesink said it's one of the issues they are still working on. Without proper drainage, the stamped concrete pad would be at risk of being damaged, she indicated.
The cost of this improvement to the park area is being covered by a grant from Federated Co-op's Community Spaces program. An announcement was made earlier this month at a Live@Lunch event in Central Park.
The mayor noted the North Battleford business improvement district applied for that grant and was successful, resulting in a large contribution of $89,000.
"We certainly want to acknowledge the support we received from Discovery Co-op to make that application successful," said Hamilton.
The plan to rehabilitate Central Park is part of the master plan being developed for downtown revitalization.
The North Battleford business improvement district, in partnership with the City of North Battleford parks and planning department have suggested the following changes to the fountain area:
• removal of existing, non-functioning water feature starting Aug. 2;
• removal of pavers (to be saved for future use) and curbing on the west planting bed;
• reconfiguration of the southern planter to be the same size as the east and north planter bed;
• acid staining of the existing curbing to match the master plan colour scheme;
• resurface the entire surface using broomed and stamped concrete and a compass design using the master plan colour scheme;
• upgrade to power source to include additional power supply and multiple plugin sites;
• add low plantings, flowers and seating in the curbed planting beds (within the existing fountain area) to create an enjoyable space for people to sit and enjoy the park;
• add additional seating/picnic tables within the park (working with the parks department to ensure ease of maintenance);
• add flower pots at the entry points to create a visually appealing space;
• repaint the white railing/ballasts on the stone entry feature to the park (101st Street) to match the colour scheme of the master plan;
• retain all mature trees and landscaping but recommend a complete safety audit be completed on Central Park to ensure CPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design) principles are being used throughout the park.
The breakdown of costs is as follows:
• cement pad/labour $30,000;
• benches and garbage cans $10,000;
• outdoor sound system $8,000;
• power source $5,500;
• signage $3,500;
• landscaping/demolition $25,000; and
• miscellaneous $5,000.
