Goldsboro City Council to discuss parks and rec repairs tonight
By Anessa Myers
Published in News on June 16, 2008 1:45 PM
It may cost more than $275,000 to repair items in Goldsboro's parks and recreation facilities.
The cost analysis comes just weeks after Judy Hills, who is working on the comprehensive master plan for the city's Parks and Recreation Trust Fund grant, brought the parks and recreation department some bad news -- the facilities and grounds aren't in very good shape.
During her walk-through of the recreation areas, she found everything from dented trash cans to unusable water fountains to unstable roofs and old, tattered buildings.
After viewing her presentation, City Council members agreed something needed to be done, so they asked department Director Sonya Shaw to prepare an estimate and priority list of the repairs.
Parks and facilities were prioritized on the basis of public use, and Herman Park and Herman Park Center are first on each list.
Herman Park repairs are estimated to cost $34,075 for the following:
*Repair termite damage in the park house
*Paint the park house inside and outside
*Paint gates, playground equipment, gazebo and interior of restrooms
*Replace trash receptacles and wooden trash can holders
*Replenish playground sand
*Install soap dispensers in bathrooms
*Put electric hand dryers in bathrooms
*Replace and add signage for park rules, shelter reservations, handicap and no parking
*Repair benches and picnic tables
*Remove or replace drinking fountains
*Replace and repair grills
*Replace chain link fence at Kiwanis Train
*Install bicycle racks
*Prepare a sand dam around playground (includes cost to do in all parks)
*Restore grass
*Add fertilizer and lime
*Add mulch (no cost)
*Prune limbs (no cost)
*Repair Wayne County Schools landscape bed (no cost -- cost associated with schools)
To do repairs to Herman Park Center, the cost is estimated at $32,800 -- a figure that includes $20,000 to paint the interior of the building, $10,000 to replace ceiling tiles and $2,800 to repair downspouts outside the Gray Room.
To bring the Goldsboro Municipal Golf Course up to par, which is second priority for recreation facilities, Ms. Shaw estimated $15,000 to make repairs to the drain lines, downspout extensions and front area of clubhouse. The current year's budget includes $8,000 to begin the repairs.
W.A. Foster Center's repairs will likely cost $52,500, $24,000 of which will likely be used to seal mortar joints outside. Repairing inside walls and painting them will cost $23,000, and foundation and pillar repair will add up to $5,500.
Costs for repairs at other parks include:
*$12,820 for H.V. Brown
*$34,140 to $89,040 for Mina Weil (depending on the choice to completely renovate and repave the tennis and basketball courts at a cost of $75,000 or to resurface the areas for $20,000)
*$32,210 for Berkeley
*$8,345 for North End
*$6,520 for Fairview
*$1,030 for Peacock
*$3,780 for Quail
*$1,515 for Henry C. Mitchell
*$450 for South End
The Parks and Recreation Department also requested a tractor-mounted leaf blower costing $3,200, a leaf raking and vacuuming machine costing $24,000, and a sand rake machine for $13,000 to help them with the above-mentioned repairs and ongoing grounds maintenance.
City Council members haven't had the opportunity to discuss the costs and repair listing but will likely do so at tonight's work session before they approve the 2008-09 budget.
City Manager Joe Huffman said that the council has "basically already talked about setting aside some money for repairs" after seeing the presentation of the current conditions of the facilities and grounds. He said that some of the appropriations set aside in the current year's budget may be used toward improvements.
"The way I see it, we will report our plan to the council, and then we can spend some of this money," Huffman said. "Once the new year starts (the fiscal year begins July 1), we can use other allocations to address needs. I am not sure how far the money will go yet since we have not taken everything into account. However, it is a safe guess that we do not have enough appropriated to take care of all of our needs.
"This means we will need to prioritize and schedule improvements as is most practical."