Iola is getting a splash park.
City Council members approved spending up to $173,000 to help push the Community Involvement Task Force/PRIDE Committee over the top in its quest to get a splash park in Iola’s Meadowbrook Park by next summer.
The decision came after visiting at length once again about CITF’s effort to get a splash park in town.
To date, members have raised more than $52,000 through a number of fundraisers and appeals for private donations, as well as grant applications.
Despite their best efforts, the rate of donations has slowed, to the point organizers down-sized the project from a $400,000 project to a design pegged at $212,000.
At the encouragement of some within the city, Task Force members appealed to the Council in April for the remaining $150,000 or so.
In a subsequent cost break-down, City staffers noted the request wasn’t large enough. Additional costs for water connections, city labor and equipment put the splash park’s price tag closer to $228,000.
There remains some wiggle room, Assistant City Administrator Corey Schinstock noted, because the city may wait to see if there’s a need for such things as additional parking and sidewalk materials.
And Renee Shaughnessy, speaking on behalf of CITF/PRIDE also noted a local business may be willing to donate the concrete, further paring costs.
The city’s portion would come from sales tax revenues earmarked for infrastructure projects.
COUNCIL members, recognizing the Herculean efforts CITF has put toward the project, were supportive from the outset, with the only question whether to apply for a Community Development Block Grant to help fund it.
After a brief discussion, the Council decided not to wait, in part because doing so would extend the timeline to getting a splash park in place.
And, as Schinstock noted, applying for CDBG funds would likely drive up costs because of extra engineering studies and other bureaucratic hoops the city would have to clear.
Council members also wondered if a separate committee looking at Riverside Park ball field projects could take on the splash park in their quest for grant funds. That, too, was nixed because adding the splash park at this point would force them back to square one, City Administrator Matt Rehder noted.
Councilman Max Grundy expressed liability concerns for the splash park’s users, although the city already has liability insurance for its swimming pool, Rehder responded.
Shaughnessy estimated the city’s water costs would be about $7,000 a month, plus another $700 monthly for other expenses. The splash pad’s controls would work on timers to prevent excess water usage. Likewise, police officers or park employees would likely shut off the water at a set time each day.
Joel Wicoff also noted the city would need to develop an annual budget for upkeep and maintenance. Those costs would become clearer after the park is up and going, Rehder said.
