Renovations will begin soon on the splash pad at Evans Towne Center Park.
During the Community and Emergency Services meeting, John Luton, community services director, presented an independent contract agreement with Bliss Products and Services, Inc., for the repair and replacement of the splash pad at Evans Towne Center Park. The park was without power for several days and the hurricane ruined the electrical component of the splash pad, which is underground.
“We’ve battled with repairs to the splash pad for a few years now and we had several splash pad contractors come out and all three recommended that the whole system needs to be replaced,” Luton said. “The components in this proposal will be moved from underground to above ground, over to the side. They don’t really recommend building splash pads the way that one is constructed anymore, for obvious reasons.”
Luton added that the proposal will increase the footprint of the splash pad by approximately 50%.
The current splash pad was built around 2011 and has had issues over the years.
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“It was an old design, and we’ve had a lot of problems with that,” said County Manager Scott Johnson. “We get a lot of use out of that splash pad. This is a very needed improvement. The fact that we’ve been able to get as far along as we have is pretty remarkable. But it’s time to change it out.”
The agreement was approved by the committee and was moved to the consent agenda to go before the full Board of Commissioners. If approved, Luton said work will start as soon as possible and they hope to be done by the end of August, which would give residents a month to use it before being closed for the season.
The CES committees also approved moving forward with a contract agreement with Bliss Products and Services, Inc. to replace 16 dugout covers at Riverside Park. Luton said these were also damaged during Hurricane Helene.
Public Works and Engineering Services Committee
The Public Works and Engineering Services Committee approved moving forward with a bid and contract for $569,884.14 with J.A. Long, Inc. for the installation of a mini-roundabout at the intersection of General Wood Parkway and Riverwood Parkway.
The committee also approved moving forward with a proclamation declaring April as Safe Digging Month. The proclamation will be presented at the April 1 Board of Commissioners meeting.
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Public Facilities Authority
The Public Facilities Authority met for the first meeting of the year on Tuesday. The board voted to appoint District 1 Commissioner Connie Melear as chair, Ricardo Bravo as vice chair and Andrew Finch as secretary/treasurer.
During the meeting, PFA board member and County Manager Scott Johnson provided a brief update on the construction of the new Building A. He said it is on schedule to finish on time and the county hopes to be moved in by the end of 2025 or beginning of 2026.
