As a show of good faith to the Great Bend voters who approved the Quality of Life sales tax in November 2021, the Great Bend City Council Monday night tentatively OKed $100,000 to pay for construction drawings of the proposed $2 million project to rejuvenate the south end of Brit Spaugh Park.
While no action was taken during a work session called to discuss the effort, it was the consensus to cautiously move forward. The reason for the trepidation is that funding for the improvements came into question.
“We’re not seeing the private donations come in like we thought they would, leaving us a deficit,” Interim City Administrator Logan Burns said. The city’s portion was calculated at $742,000. The project is being undertaken in cooperation with the Great Bend Recreation Commission, which pledged $345,700 for playground equipment.
Envisioned in this effort are bleachers, shade structures, outdoor basketball and pickleball courts, a playground, mini-soccer pitches and restrooms. The horseshoe pits would be moved and the small baseball field would be eliminated.
So, Burns said there was a decision to make: move forward or switch to another project from the Quality of Life Master Plan. Choices include a splash pad, which would come with a price tag in the $650,000 range, or bathrooms at Langrehr Field at a cost of about $100,000.
“This (study session) is just to get something going because the clock’s ticking,” Burns said. Time is running out if they want to have something in place by next spring or summer.
The park construction drawings and the splash pad are not mutually exclusive, Burns said. In fact, by piecing together carryover funds and money from other planned projects, it could be possible to tackle much of both.
Alan Moeder, Ward 1 councilman, said he had visited with folks from the Thelma Faye Harms Trust, which had pledged $60,000 for basketball courts. “They are interested, but they want the final drawings. They want to see what they’re going to pay for.”
Moeder said the GBRC also has people who are willing to contribute, but who want the final plans first.
The city already has colorful artist renderings of the project. But, these don’t include specifics, Moeder said.
“I can’t go ask people for money if we don’t have something concrete, in my opinion,” he said. “I don’t have a problem going asking people for money, but I want more than just this pretty little picture.”
The council also agreed it was necessary to move forward sooner rather than later because the cost for the endeavor was only going to go higher.
So, Burns said he can now go out for bids to do the drawings. Regardless of the fate of the project, the city will have these.
The work is part of the 10-year Quality of Life Master Plan that includes a myriad of projects funded by the .15% Quality of Life sales tax approved by voters in November 2021.
