On July 17, the council approved a design services bid from BG Consultants of Manhattan for $85,400 for the project to improve the south end of Brit Spaugh Park. So far, city personnel have had two meetings with firm representatives as the effort moves forward, Assistant City Administrator Logan Burns said, addressing the City Council Tuesday night.

“What we’re doing is just going into the project a little bit more in depth, going over some layout and our preferences with it,” he said. “Right now, they are scheduled to complete the field survey mid September and then schematic design, which is just preliminary sketch, on September 21. 

“And then that’s where we’re going to be meeting again, just kind of see what that thing looks like,” Burns said. They are currently on scheduled to complete construction documents on Jan. 25, 2024, “and then at that point, we can receive bids.”

Burns said they are looking at having bids out by Feb. 29, 2024. “And then our goal right now is to present a qualified bid counsel on March 18 for your approval.”

At that point, they will also look at how the funding is shaping up, he said.  

“This is a pretty exciting project,” City Administrator Brandon Anderson said. 

This is the $2 million project to rejuvenate the park, of which the city’s portion is about $742,000. The project is being undertaken in cooperation with the Great Bend Recreation Commission, which pledged $345,700 for playground equipment.

Included in this effort are bleachers, shade structures, outdoor basketball and pickleball courts, a playground, mini-soccer pitches and restrooms. The horseshoe pits will be moved and the small baseball field across from Park Elementary School will be eliminated.

The city has already approved the creation of construction drawings, which came with a $100,000 price tag.

This is part of the 10-year Quality of Life Master Plans funded by the .15% Quality of Life sales tax approved by voters in November 2021. The city is also taking private donations for the effort.