The Canby City Council will next week consider setting the budget for Canby’s new splash pad at $475,000 and following a “Grasslands” concept the contractor proposed, a design incorporating plants and wildflowers in line with the city’s identity as the “Garden Spot.”
If councilors approve this course of action, the construction firm handling the project, 2KG Contractors out of Portland, will prepare three design concepts using the “Grasslands” theme as a guiding philosophy, which will then be presented to the community at a public meeting for their input on what features should be included.
The following is a page from 2KG’s proposal demonstrating the general look and feel of the “Grasslands” concept. It is not one of the three design concepts that will be prepared and presented to the community.
At an estimated $380,365, “Grasslands” was the most expensive of the three initial “design alternatives” presented by 2KG in its original proposal, with the cheapest coming in under $345,000. However, the theme was important to the city, according to a memo from City Administrator Rick Robinson.
“Of particular interest in this proposal was Canby’s designation as a ‘Garden Spot,'” Robinson said. “The ‘Grasslands’ design alternative, while the most costly of the three, did much to capture this philosophy.”
The memo is attached to the ordinance the city council will consider next week, proposing that the budget for the new splash pad at Maple Street Park be set at $475,000. That figure includes the estimated $380,000 for the “Grasslands” concept, along with a $95,000 contingency for any change orders that may result from the community input meeting.
The project will be financed through SDC (System Development Charge) funds, which are fees paid by developers to support increased capacity to city infrastructure such as streets, sewer, stormwater and parks.
Tennis Courts to Return
The splash pad will be sited in place of the tennis courts at Maple Street Park, a location the city favors because of its proximity to the existing playground. A covered seating area will be built between the two play areas, so parents can keep an eye on their kids without getting wet, sweaty or sunburned (though, knowing me and my kids, all three will probably still happen to me).
The news that the existing tennis courts would be removed to make way for the splash pad caused no shortage of consternation from many residents. Though the courts are largely in disrepair, they are frequently used. Indeed, they are one of the few places in the area that tennis players can go for free and are the most easily accessible.
Robinson’s memo also addresses this concern, with the announcement that the tennis courts will be rebuilt in a different location at Maple Street Park in the 2021-2022 fiscal year. The plan is to build the new courts to the north of their current location.
