After several years of discussion and many questions as to whether or not the project would ultimately come together, the Waterloo Park District Board finally approved construction of a splash pad at its meeting last Wednesday evening.

The decision came as one section of a three-part resolution which was unanimously passed by the board.

The first component of the resolution was for the park board to accept project direction from Waterloo Director of Public Works Tim Birk as well as financial assistance from the City of Waterloo totalling $400,000.

The Waterloo City Council previously approved the allocation of city video gambling funds at its Sept. 5 meeting.

As previously reported, Waterloo Mayor Stan Darter – who had previously been involved in splash pad discussions both as mayor and a former alderman – remarked at that meeting that “part of the problem all along was the size of the project.”

Also at that meeting, Darter said he had been in touch with Birk in order to get his assistance on the splash pad given his experience with other projects of similar scale.

This being the case, section two of the splash pad resolution effectively gave Birk the authority to act as project manager, working on behalf of the park board to supervise contractors.

Section three established that construction of the splash pad was to begin in accordance with an HMG Engineers contract and specifications previously established between the contracting company and park district, with any significant changes requiring approval from the district.

This means that the splash pad will be built to the previously discussed specifications costing $1.8 million – up from the $800,000 estimated prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and resultant labor and material shortages.

While park board meetings over the last few months have seen some discussion of reducing the size of the splash pad – with Commissioner Michael Nolte describing the substantial scale of Waterloo’s proposal compared to other splash pads back in May – it was mentioned at last month’s meeting that such a design change likely wouldn’t be feasible.

Commissioner Mary Gardner further spoke to this point at last week’s meeting, also describing how the reduction shouldn’t be necessary given the additional assistance from the city.

“After several meetings and investigating and trying to figure out how we were gonna do this, we realized, of course, that we weren’t even going to be able to do the downsize,” Gardner said. “And then the assistance came in from the city. Mayor Darter came to the meetings and realized that if this project was gonna be completed for our community, we were gonna need some assistance.”

“There are some changes to it as far as a little bit of downsize on the concrete,” she continued, “but by having the city come in and help, they have more resources and tools that just very much assists us in completing the project.”

With the cost standing at roughly $1.8 million, the city contributing $400,000 and an additional $400,000 from the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development grant through the Illinois Department of Natural Resources – the deadline of which was pushed earlier this year to June 2024 – the park district will need to pay the remaining costs.

Waterloo Park District Treasurer Julie Bradley gave an overview of the project’s financial impact on the park district.

Bradley said the board has already put some funds – including some of the first $200,000 from the OSLAD grant – toward the splash pad and would have a reserve of about $400,000 after the state pays the district the second half of OSLAD funds upon project completion.

“Originally, I had hoped that the park district would limit their out of pocket funds to $800,000,” Bradley said. “That was my goal. The plan was originally supposed to be $800,000. Our original investment was supposed to be $400,000. I felt that if we doubled that, we’d be OK. That’s not gonna work. For us to get the project done, it’s going to cost the park district about $977,000 of our funds to get it done. We’ve already spent some of that. The rest of it we have funds on-hand.”

Some additional discussion on the splash pad took place, with Commissioner Shelby Mathes bringing up the possibility of ordering about $75,000 worth of additions to the project – namely a tractor and several cornstalk design features – thanks to contributions made by community members he had spoken with.

At the end of the meeting, during commissioner comments, Park Board President Gina Pfund opened the floor to Waterloo Citizens for a Pool President Amy Grandcolas, who said she had been working with a local organization to procure funds for shades, chairs and other amenities not included in base splash pad plans.

After the splash pad resolution was passed, members of the park board extended their thanks to the city, architects and other individuals who have had a hand in the project.

Mathes, who has been heavily involved in organizing the splash pad over the last few years, expressed his gratitude and relief about the resolution.

“I’m just glad we’re getting this splash pad done,” Mathes said. “Thank you all for getting her done.”

Following the meeting, Pfund shared a comment with the Republic-Times expressing her thanks.

“As President of the Waterloo Park District, I just want to express how thrilled we are to see that the splash pad project at William Zimmer Park will be coming to fruition for the city of Waterloo during the summer of 2024,” Pfund said. “Many were involved in this successful collaboration between commissioners and staff of the Waterloo Park District and Mayor Stan Darter, Tim Birk and Waterloo City Council members. The time, talent and generosity put forth by all those involved is very much appreciated.”

Several other items were on the meeting agenda, including two resolutions concerning newly appointed Park District Attorney Paul Schimpf – who was sworn in at the meeting’s start – which named him as the board’s FOIA officer and established that he would be receiving Illinois Open Meetings Act training.

Damage at Konarcik Park following severe weather over the last two months was also discussed.

Waterloo Park District Superintendent Don Prater said this damage was largely covered by insurance.

Another substantial discussion item were the hours for the community’s parks, which are broadly closed from dusk to dawn.

The matter came up following correspondence earlier in the meeting in which a Waterloo citizen requested the time be adjusted as they are unable to walk their dog in the morning at certain points in the year.

The skate park also came up in this discussion, as its posted hours are from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The skate park was also brought up due to a notable amount of vandalism involving the skate park bathrooms which were recently closed. Prater mentioned a skateboard was dropped inside the portable toilet at the park.

Mathes took issue with the suggestion of making the skate park hours dawn to dusk like the rest of Waterloo’s parks, arguing that students would hardly be able to play there during the fall and winter as days get shorter.

Though the discussion was concluded with Pfund saying a vote could be held on the matter next meeting, Gardener voiced her concerns about not adjusting the skate park hours.

“I do think we need some discussion on the skate park because, of all the things that we talk about here that I want to say kinda dig at our money, nickel-and-dime us, and the complaints that come in come from the skate park,” Gardner said.

Other minor items discussed at the meeting included Prater’s request to purchase a new generator – a limit of $1,500 was approved – and Commissioner Keith Buettner’s donation of a bench at the Lakeview Park pickleball courts.