What to know as Salina nears new water feature at Jerry Ivey Memorial Park

A major step in bringing a water feature back to Jerry Ivey Memorial Park has been made after approval by the Salina City Commission.

The commission authorized the use of $109,000 to be spent for services by George Butler Associates Inc. to design a new water feature and other updates at the park.

Here's what to know about the history of this project and what's ahead for Jerry Ivey Memorial Park.

Former pond at Jerry Ivey Memorial Park plagued with blue-green algae

For years, the biggest issue at the park was its pond, that was created to be a water feature in the park including a fountain in the center of it.

Jeff Hamond, parks and recreation director for Salina, said the pond had seen persistent problems over the year, including blue-green algae being present due to stagnant water and sediment build up over the years.

That pond, after discussion and approval by the city commission, was filled in and demolished in late 2023.

Commission decides to update Jerry Ivey Memorial Park

The demolition of the pond led to the park no longer having a water feature, something that many in the public wanted, so in October 2023 the city commission asked staff to look into options for updating the park.

Hammond said these included a new water feature with interactive and nature components, updating the memorial for fallen Salina police officer Jerry Ivey, renovating or updating the splash pad, destination lighting and an updated gazebo, landscaping updates and increasing pedestrian access.

Beginning in January 2024, the city began pursuing design engineering firms for the whole project Hammond said five firms responded with George Butler, out of Lenexa, coming out as the top candidate.

"They scored the highest in the total evaluation criteria," Hammond said.

Higher budget for Jerry Ivey project than originally estimated

One of the concerns of the project is the potential cost of completing it.

Originally, the commission approved $650,000 for Jerry Ivey Memorial Park improvements, but the current conceptual designs have a cost estimate of $980,000.

Part of the reason for this increase is a new splash pad element, which alone is estimated to be $350,000.

The current splash pad was discovered to have plumbing failures when parks and recreation staff turned it on for the 2024 season, causing it to not be used at all this year.

The new splash pad will be moved closer to the proposed water feature, adding more to the total cost of the project.

Jerry Ivey project on accelerated schedule to complete

The timeline for the project is rather quick, with some conceptual designs already completed.

After this approval to move forward, the agreement between the city and George Butler Associates would have final design drawings available by November 2024 for contractor bids and construction beginning in February 2025.

Hammond said the schedule for parks and recreation has splash pads opening in May of each year, so construction on that portion of the project at least is expected to be completed by then.

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: What to know as Salina nears new water feature at Jerry Ivey Memorial Park