An artist’s rendering from Waterplay Solutions Corp. shows the proposed design of the splash pad at Whalley Park in Southwick.
Reminder Publishing submitted image
SOUTHWICK — The installation of the Whalley Park splash pad is expected to begin in six to eight weeks, after the town planner recently agreed to oversee the project.
“I reached out to Jon Goddard, and he agreed,” said Finance Committee Chair Joseph Deedy during the Aug. 14 meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission.
The project was paused by town Chief Administrative Officer Nicole Parker two weeks previously, after she learned that Crestview Construction and Trucking Inc. was all set to begin site work without a clearly defined construction supervisor representing the town’s interests.
As the commission’s discussion on the splash pad project began, Parker said she had initially planned to attend the meeting to ask it if any of its members could suggest a supervisor, because she had been unsuccessful in her attempts to find one that didn’t have a conflict of interest.
She then said Deedy called earlier that day asking for an update on the project. She told him she didn’t have the qualification to serve as the supervisor and asked if he could help.
Then, looking over at Deedy sitting next to her, she said: “Take it from there.”
Deedy said he had contacted Parker because Crestview, which has a contract with the town for small construction projects, had reached out to him asking about the project.
He said Crestview wanted to “get something in the ground,” referring the plumbing under the pad, and make sure it had all the pieces needed to finish the job.
After he and Parker spoke, he said he spent an hour thinking about it.
“You know how I am. I can’t put anything to rest,” Deedy said.
At that point he contacted the town planner, Goddard, and had a “lengthy talk and not too much hugging” and at the conclusion, Goddard agreed.
“As long as I helped him with the small stuff … between the both of us, we can get it done,” Deedy said, adding earlier that while Goddard is not an engineer, he has experience overseeing construction projects in town.
Commission Chair David DeiDolori asked Deedy what he meant by the “small stuff.”
“I got to get coffees, muffins … I believe that’s the small stuff,” Deedy responded with a laugh.
“I’d like to get it rolling,” DeiDolori said.
“Our task is to get it up and running. Our task isn’t to run it,” Deedy said.
He then asked if the commission wanted to start the project in the fall with the goal of completing it if it had all the fixtures and equipment needed or wait until the spring to start.
Deiloroi asked commission member John Whalley III, since he originally proposed the project, what he thought.
“Let’s go with it. I think it’s a great idea,” said Whalley, adding that he was sure that all the equipment and fixtures for the pad’s installation had arrived from the manufacturer Waterplay Solutions.
Deedy said Crestview and Goddard wouldn’t be available to focus on the project until October. If Crestview does find it needs additional plumbing fixtures and pad equipment, it will close up the site and wait for the spring to complete it, Deedy said.
Town Meeting allocated $294,000 in Community Preservation Committee funds to build the splash pad in 2023.
The splash pad will have three towers that rain down water, and a large ring, big enough for children to walk through, that would have water spraying inside from the ring’s edge. There will also be two tulip-shaped fixtures spraying up from the park’s deck, and two “pop-it” sprayers.
As a water conservation measure, the system shuts off automatically when users aren’t present to turn it on. How long it continues running after being activated can be adjusted, to save more water.
Earlier this year, Community Preservation Committee Coordinator Sabrina Pooler said of the $294,000 allocated for the project, $103,000 had already been spent. That money covered about $15,000 in design and engineering work performed by R. Levesque Associates, as well as the money used to purchase the pad’s equipment. The remaining $187,000 will cover construction and any unforeseen costs.
