CHICKASHA – Construction of a pavilion in Shannon Springs Park, and an anticipated increase in the cost of rebuilding the trail around the park, were discussed recently by the Chickasha City Council.
The Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust has approved a $100,000 grant for construction of a multi-use pavilion that would serve as “a dedicated space for a local farmer’s market and be a centralized hub for community events,” Parks and Recreation Director Andy Conyers said.
Since the May 4 council meeting at which the TSET grant was discussed, the city staff has worked with Freese & Nichols consultants and the city’s Parks and Recreation Board “to focus on the size and location of the pavilion.”
The pavilion would be approximately 44 feet by 40 feet in size, Conyers said, and its suggested location is directly north of the bathhouse parking lot and west of the seasonal “Festival of Light” Christmas tree, he reported.
The estimated cost of building a pavilion of that size in that location is $530,000 to $680,000, Conyers said. “City staff’s goal is to stay on the lower end of that range,” he added. Costs will “come into clearer focus after the design progresses.”
A task order approved Aug. 3 by the council would pay Freese and Nichols up to $119,950 for professional design services on the pavilion.
The Oklahoma City company’s scope includes refining the preliminary concept and preparing construction documents, including plans, specifications, and an opinion of probable construction costs. Their work will include a professional survey, geotechnical engineering, electrical engineering, landscape architecture, and engineering design services.
The work schedule estimates design and bidding will take six months and construction would take four months.
The city’s contribution, initially estimated at $373,000, would probably be about $575,000 – nearly $20,000 on top of the TSET grant for F&N’s design services plus the anticipated construction cost – the council was told.
“We do have those funds available if the council decides to proceed,” Finance Director Rich Edwards said.
During a meeting May 1, 2023, the City Council and representatives of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation approved a plan to demolish the existing asphalt trails around the pond in Shannon Springs Park and replace them with concrete pedestrian/bicycle paths. The project also would address erosion issues around the east and west sides of the 4.5-acre pond.
Chickasha’s proposal qualified for a federal TAP grant that’s administered by the state Transportation Department. The agreement stipulated that ODOT would pay for up to 80% of the total cost (capped at $1.44 million) and the City of Chickasha would finance the remaining 20% or more if the estimated cost increased.
In the three years since then, the anticipated total cost has grown 11%, from $1.8 million to almost $2 million. The city’s financial contribution to the project is now estimated at $533,127, Conyers said.
The city’s matching funds must be sent to ODOT “prior to the project being advertised for bids,” he said.
With the council’s unanimous approval of the supplemental, modified agreement, “it’s anticipated the project will be advertised for bids in October,” Conyers said. If a successful bidder is selected, the project will begin early next year, he said. The contractor will have five months to complete the job.
“A lot of soil and sod will be hauled to the park, lights will be installed, and benches will be brought in,” Conyers said.
TAP stands for Transportation Alternatives Program and is a federally funded program administered by ODOT within the state. TAP funds smaller-scale projects aimed primarily at connectivity and active transportation, such as walking and cycling. Eligible projects include sidewalks and trails.
Meanwhile, an application the city submitted for a federal grant to rebuild the 230-foot-long, 4½-foot-wide pedestrian bridge that spans the pond in the park is “on hold” for now, although “the city has budgeted federal funds for that project in Fiscal Year 2028,” Conyers said.
In a related matter, there have been some preliminary discussions about eventually draining the pond in Shannon Springs Park, perhaps to excavate some of the silt that has accumulated in it over the years.