from the Sackville Tribune Post:
Park makeover nearing completion
KatieKatie Tower
Published on August 06, 2014
SACKVILLE, N.B. – Work on the downtown park is finally nearing the finish line, more than a month and a half beyond the anticipated re-opening date.
Andrew Amos, the project manager who is overseeing the park redevelopment, said several delays have slowed down the makeover project this spring and summer – including weather- and soil-related issues.
With the contractor starting work in early spring, the delays came early on with snowstorms, even into late April and May, said Amos. That set the workers back a few weeks from the get-go.
“The first thing the contractor had to do when we awarded the contract was come to the site and blow out snow,” he said.
Then it was determined the existing soil on site was worse than anticipated “so what we had hoped to be able to leave in place had to be trucked off site and replaced,” said Amos. This extra excavation, trucking and new backfilling caused another delay.
This issue was followed up by “on-again off-again rain” in June, which created problems for the contractors in trekking across the site with equipment without creating huge mud pits.
Fortunately, said Amos, the last month of constant, warm and dry weather through July has allowed the contractor to get the main elements done to the point where landscaping could commence.
“Had the weather stayed like it was in June, I think we would have lost the whole season,” he said.
The last month has been busy with work now nearly complete on the multi-purpose building, the bandstand being finished, underground services done, the site lighting installed, the playground equipment relocated, and the final grading done.
Amos said the landscapers began laying sod last week and other work to be done over the next couple of weeks includes the repaving of the tennis and basketball courts, the pouring of the concrete for the splashpad, planting the trees and shrubs, and finishing the walkways.
The goal, he said, is to open the park to the public during the week of Aug. 25.
“The contractor will do whatever he can to accelerate this work - he's keenly aware of our very strong desire to get this park open to the residents of Sackville ASAP. And we'll hope for a nice warm September so we can get some good use this season.”
The "good news," said Amos, is that the contractors will finish the job on budget.