The Pacific Park renovation progressed this week with Sulphur Springs City Council’s approval of a bid for concrete and purchase of a ready-to connect public restroom through an online purchasing cooperative.
The city received only two very close bids from businesses interested in supplying concrete for the playground borders, walkways and splash pad and any concrete for the park except the concrete the sports pavilion will be built on in Pacific Park. Bell Concrete Inc. bid $120 per cubic yard and Martin Marietta – Sulphur Springs Ready Mix bid $121 per cubic yard.
Both bids are indicative of the impact of inflation on construction costs. A year ago, when the city awarded bids for a similar project the cost for concrete was $110 per cubic yard, $10-$11 less per cubic yard than current bids for the same materials, Sulphur Springs Director of Finance/Assistant City Manager Lesa Smith pointed out.
Bell Concrete was awarded the bid to provide concrete for Pacific Park grounds improvements. The City of Sulphur Springs will use a portion of the $750,000 in funding assistance awarded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, US Department of the Interior, National Park Service, administered by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Recreation Grants Branch. City staff plan to move quickly, getting started with that portion of the park renovation started,
Sulphur Springs City Council also earlier this week approved the purchase of a restroom for Pacific Park from CTX Precast Concrete Products. The $87,820 purchase will be made using a Sourcewell purchasing cooperative contract, which in the long run was reported to be about $6,491 cheaper than buying the restroom directly from the vendor.
“When MHS designed Pacific Park, they designed it with this specific bathroom in mind. It’s a bathroom that comes fully complete. It’s delivered on a truck and set down, utilities are connected to it. It’s concrete. It’s sturdy. It’s good for what we need out at the park. It also has a graffiti coating on it so that if anybody marks on the bathroom, it’s easier to remove,” Smith noted.
Sulphur Springs voters in 2019 approved $3 million in bond funding, with half to be applied toward Pacific Park improvements, including a construction of a new HW Grays Building, and the other half going toward construction of a new senior citizens center. The bonds will be paid for annually using a portion of the Economic Development funding.
The City of Sulphur Springs also applied for and received a $25,000 grant from the National Fitness Campaign to construct an Outdoor Fitness Court in Pacific Park
While the TPWD grant couldn’t be applied toward the Grays building, it can be used for improvements to the park grounds identified by the community during the planning process for an updated Parks and Recreation Open Space Master Plan for city recreational facilities.
The TPWD grant will help fund the new playground. The $245,000 project was designed by MHS Planning & Design and provided by Whirlix. Additional improvements planned at Pacific Park include the basketball pavilion and new restrooms. Walking paths and landscaping are expected to follow thereafter. Funding permitting, city officials hope to irrigate the park so that it will continue to be lush like Celebration Plaza.
