Wayland officials may reject all bids for the work on the City Park and re-bid for the project, which is scheduled to get under way next spring.
But the bigger headache may be perceived lack of parking on the four streets that surround the park, Church, Cherry, Maple and Park.
City Manager Mike Selden said bids came in higher than expected and explained, “We can negotiate with the low bidder to get the price down, but if we can’t, we can reject the bids and then re-bid.”
The City Park project, partially funded by a grant from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, will include a splash pad and resurfacing for the basketball and tennis courts.
Planning Commissioner Sam Dykstra said, “I think we’ve got a parking issue. You don’t have a lot of spaces.”
Dykstra said he’s noticed parking problems and traffic congestion for the city’s musical concerts on Friday nights in August and he anticipates the problems to worsen with the arrival of a splash pad.
“These things (splash pads) are very popular and you’ll get a lot of people to come to the park,” Dykstra said.
Selden recommended the Planning Commission approve site plans for the changes inside the park and give city officials time to seek ways to increase parking spaces on the public streets. One option might be more angle parking like what is used on Park Street on the west side of the park.
Commission Vice Chairman J.D. Gonzales said the parking issue was not part of the site plan and he urged approval for the evening and leaving parking decisions for later.
Planning Consultant Janis Johnson agreed, maintaining that “You could approve the site plan conditional on the city looking for ways to increase parking and accessibility… You’ll have to review the parking when it happens.”
PHOTO: City Councilman Tim Rose is holding up the two artists’ sketches of the City Park renovations for Planning Commission members to view. Looking on are ex-officio commissioner Lisa Banas and Sam Dykstra.
