Title
Request for Recreation and Park Commission Recommendation that McKinley Park Playground repairs and replacement be prioritized and for staff to move forward with implementing this replacement project.
Body
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Recreation and Park Commission From: Dave J. Leimsieder, Acting Director, Recreation and Parks BACKGROUND
The Alameda Recreation & Park Department (ARPD) currently maintains a priority list for playground replacement. Replacement of playground equipment at Tillman Park along with the larger (age 5 - 12) playground at Krusi Park are at the top of this priority list. This past spring, several storms swept through Alameda, leaving behind extensive damage to trees, and other property throughout the community. On March 21, 2023 a large palm tree at McKinley park fell on the primary playground structure. The damage from the storm and the tree falling culminated in a total loss of the play structure. For safety purposes a fence has been erected around the site of the play structure and the damaged playground equipment has been removed. McKinley Park is a vital community asset that serves a great many youth and families in the area.
DISCUSSION
In response to the total loss of the Playground Structure at McKinley Park, ARPD staff began exploring pre-fabricated design options for replacement that share the same basic features and attributes as the damaged play structure.
• ARPD has identified several pre-fabricated design options from a trusted vendor that designs and builds playground equipment.
• ARPD staff will be sharing these proposed design options with the public at a community meeting scheduled on Thursday, May 18th at McKinley Park.
• ARPD will present these various options along with the community preferred design as part of the staff presentation at the upcoming Recreation & Park Commission Meeting.
ALTERNATIVES
• Staff can go back and start the process over and conduct a full design process including solicitation of additional community feedback before returning to the commission with a new recommendation.
• ARPD can do nothing, and table this project until a later date.
• Consequences of both alternative options include continued loss of community play space, and potential for adverse financial impact due to the increased cost of labor and materials.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
• The financial Impact of this project is estimated to be $100,000.00 which would be funded by the existing CIP for Playground Replacement.
• Staff does not anticipate the cost of this project to significantly delay other playground projects that are currently prioritized for replacement.
• Staff may need to seek additional funding from council to complete other playground projects depending on market conditions and inflated cost of goods and equipment.
RECOMMENDATION
ARPD staff requests that the Recreation and Park Commission move to recommend that McKinley Park Playground repairs and replacement be prioritized and for staff to move forward with implementing this replacement project.
Respectfully submitted,
Dave J. Leimsieder, Acting Director, Recreation and Parks