Monday afternoon at Henderson Park, where old playground equipment has been removed and excavation for improving the park has started.
If you pass the 800 block of Calapooia Street, you’ll see that work has begun on the Albany Parks and Recreation Department’s project to update Henderson Park. But because of the usual suspect — supply chain issues — it will be a while before anyone plays on new equipment there.
Monday I heard from Rick Barnett of the parks department. “Several of your articles of late have talked about supply chains being slow,” he said in an email. “Here is another.”
The city’s contractor for the site work at Henderson Park is Petrichor Constructors LLC of Junction City, which submitted the lowest of three bids at $128,567. (The price does not include playground equipment or site fixtures, which the city is buying separately.)
“They are going to do as much of the excavation and prep as they can during the summer’s guaranteed good weather,” Barnett said of the contractor, “but the playground equipment is messed up by supply shortages, and what was supposed to be a 5-week lead time became a 14-week lead, so we aren’t anticipating the playground equipment arriving until October.
“So the project will look partially done for a period of time.”
Other park projects are affected by similar difficulties.
Barnett said the city is having trouble getting tennis court companies to bid on resurfacing the courts at both Henderson and Burkhart parks.
And as for the planned “fitness court” at Burkhart Park, the parks department has asked for bids to build a 40-by-40-foot concrete pad on which to place the equipment. Barnett says he’s not optimistic of getting reasonable bids for that project either.
Looking at Henderson Park on Monday, I saw the tall old slide lying off to the side, and I wondered what happened to the other, smaller slide and the set of traditional see-saws that used to make the city nervous because of the potential for kids getting hurt.
Turns out the small slide was given to someone who used to play on it as a child, and the set of teeter-totters went to someone else for his family’s use in his backyard.
“We couldn’t sell them for liability reasons,” Barnett told me. So the items went to the first people who asked. (hh)
One of the two old slides being replaced with new play equipment at Henderson Park.
Oh, I wish they would have left this cute little park alone. This was one of our favorites to stop by after getting ice-cream or some other treat in the evening. Probably just going to put the same lame unistructure type playset that they put in most parks now. On another note, the city planners have still forgotten about the neighborhood park and trails that were promised when all the residential construction started on the east side of I-5 almost 2 decades ago! Not surprising, considering we don’t have complete sidewalks or safe bike paths for getting into town.
Hold the phone.
Why does this situation surprise you?
Didn’t Hartman say that you are “fully aware” of supply chain slowdowns that are happening during your “reign”?
The situation at this itty bitty park shouldn’t surprise people who hold royal office.
And is the cause Covid? Or is it China? Or is it computer chips? Or is it Hungary? All of the above?
Personally, I think it is white supremacy. Bob Woods convinced me of that.
I am deeply honored by the esteemed Shadle reference to my inestimable contribution to the discussion on important issues affecting Greater Albany and beyond. Like Senator Lindsay Graham, a man known for sticking to his beliefs in spite of the challenges, my only real desire is to “remain relevant” in a world where relevance is easily dismissed, particularly amongst the Albany Glitterati. I can rest easily tonight knowing that important influencers such as G. L. Shadle have made me relevant again. His stamp of approval gives me hope that all is not lost.
Don’t worry. You’re NOT relevant!
PIFFLE
So where are all these all these supplies coming from??
Why so great a shortage ??
How is it that getting a contractor to give you a bid is such a problem??
If the same supply company and the same contractor is always used perhaps it is time to use someone else