Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By P.J. GLISSON
Bessemer — Members of the Bessemer Parks and Recreation Commission voted last week to add several additional components to a pending new five-year recreation plan and a related capital improvements plan.
Commissioners voted, specifically, to add the expense of a splash pad and ADA playground equipment to the improvement plan’s cost.
They also voted to add the splash pad to the recreation plan and to track down which goals in the previous five-year plan already had been accomplished so that those items can be removed from the updated plan.
City Manager Christopher Frazer, who ran the meeting in the absence of Chairman Eric Longhini, said splash pad costs range from $85,000 to $140,000 and up.
“But it’s something the community has asked for,” said commissioner Adam Zak, adding people will drive 40 miles to visit a splash pad.
Zak said the expired recreation plan included the city’s goal to purchase ADA playground equipment, so that element simply needs to be retained.
Frazer said that the ADA equipment cost likely will be similar to that of the splash pad.
Finally, the city manager said that he is awaiting quotes in relation to the expense in creating a pickleball court in Bluff Valley Park. Commissioners agreed they would like to add that to the recreation plan.
“I have nothing else to add,” said commissioner Russ Maki in relation to recreation goals. “We pretty much have a full deck of cards to work with.”
Frazer said that, once he finishes updates to the recreation plan’s capital improvement plan, he will send it to the city council.
The city manager also asked about hiring a company to create the new recreation plan versus him doing it himself. He said a hired company could gather data, send out questionnaires and compile the report.
Zak said hiring out is more appropriate for larger cities who have the budget to afford it. Instead, he suggested that Frazer use the expired recreation plan as a template for the new one. Maki agreed.
In other news at the March 6 meeting, commissioners voted to table the election of a chair and vice-chair until all members of the board are present.
Frazer said that Longhini and commissioner Trevor Jackovich recently were reappointed to the board by the city council. In addition, last week’s meeting was the first that Dominic Fabbri attended, virtually, as a new member.
All votes were unanimous with Longhini and Trevor Jackovich absent.
After the meeting, Frazer said that the city will have no active recreation plan until the updated plan is in place.
“Ultimately, a good plan takes 6 to 9 months,” he said in referring to timing suggested by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
Until then, he said the city cannot apply for recreation-related grants, including a third try for an MDNR grant for the desired Iron Belle Trailhead behind City Hall.
The Parks and Recreation Commission’s next regular meeting will be on April 4 at 6 p.m. in the council chambers of the Bessemer City Hall.
