Prairie Village recently honed in on a new shelter option for Harmon Park.
The Prairie Village City Council last week voted 11-to-0 to direct staff to move forward with a renovation of the existing shelter for $1.17 million. Councilmember Ron Nelson was absent.
This is part of a larger improvement effort at Harmon Park, which is getting a new restroom and inclusive playground in addition to an updated shelter.
The city council went with the cheapest option
The renovation of the existing shelter is the cheapest option and results in 228 seats — more than the 192 the shelter currently sits, according to city documents.
The city presented three other options, which generally called for tearing down the existing shelter and replacing it with two to three new shelters of varying sizes.
Those new construction options cost between $1.2 to $1.3 million, and resulted in a loss of 10 to 18 seats.
City Engineer Melissa Prenger said the renovation includes a new roof, repainting and divider so the shelter can be rented out for two events at the same time.
Counclimember Piper Reimer noted that renovating rather than demolishing the structure avoids adding to negative environmental impacts, which the city is working to mitigate in other efforts.
The $1.17M includes the cost of a new restroom
- The restrooms will include separate men’s and women’s facilities, each with two stalls, and a family restroom that is equipped with an adult changing table.
- Prenger said the new restroom is included in the total cost presented to city council last week.
- Prenger said Harmon Park’s restroom facility has problems with vandalism, so the city plans to use building materials that cost more to construct but also allow the city to clean it more easily.
- The option to renovate rather than reconstruct the shelter allows the city to keep the current restroom open until the new restroom is finished, she added.
Councilmembers disliked the high renovation cost
Councilmember Inga Selders said the pavilion, much like Tommy the Turtle at the park, is a historical landmark for native Prairie Villagers.
Councilmember Bonnie Limbird said she likes keeping the community feeling of the one large shelter, but she was “bummed about the cost of renovation.”
Councilmember Dave Robinson said the renovation option is only about $30,000 less than the $1.2 million option, which includes a demolition of the current structure and construction of two new shelters.
“It just didn’t make sense that these new builds were marginally more expensive in my mind,” Robinson said.
Prenger said she believes the architect’s estimate for a renovation is more conservative, while the estimates for new construction are “pinpointed.”
Next steps:
- Prenger said the city will go back to the architect to finish the plans for the shelter.
- The city wants to take the project out to bid in December in order to get started on the project in mid-December or mid-January, weather permitting, she said.
Go deeper: Price tag for Prairie Village Harmon Park improvements going up
