Godfrey Park will stay open as is this summer, according to South Jax Trustees

By Benjamin Cox on July 12, 2018 at 8:44am

Originally, Godfrey Park renovation plans were scheduled at the start of summer. After last night’s trustee session, they have been pushed back to at least after Labor Day weekend.

A South Jacksonville Board of Trustees Committee of the Whole meeting was held last night. A special board meeting was held afterwards to vote on committee meeting decisions. The Committee of the Whole meeting was focused on two topics.

First, a lengthy Parks and Tourism discussion about Godfrey Park was held before trustees voted to seek additional bids. Mayor Harry Jennings explains why plans for any park renovations were postponed.

“We had a couple trustees that had talked to a few different companies and gotten some initial proposals, but then the rest of us decided it would be most prudent for us to be good stewards of the money by getting an engineering proposal and then bidding it out to make sure that we’re getting the best prices and the best work we can with the citizens’ tax dollars. Big things like renovating the restrooms, paint work on the pavilion, removal and replacement of all the mulch, removal and replacement of some trees. We’re also planning a shade awning on the north side of the park. And then next year, we’re probably going to do some more work. We’re going to have a new sign, some landscaping, and also a new fence on the perimeter of the park.”

Trustee Paula Stewart mentions some things that have also been discussed by the board that are not being addressed in the engineering proposal for changes to Godfrey Park that was used at last night’s meeting.

“I see another phase to this. We haven’t addressed the parking lot that has yet to be striped. We haven’t addressed fixing the toy, or the odd concrete blocks that are all around instead of typical parking.”

Trustees also discussed the idea that landscaping can instead be done next year to achieve the desired effect, as opposed to leaving brand new landscaping out in winter. In addition, Trustee Stacy Pinkerton voted against the seeking of bids and delay of renovations.

Then, the Planning and Public Facilities committee discussed the need for either repair of the air conditioning and dehumidifying unit in the village Water Plant or full replacement.

Village Water Superintendent John Green describes the necessity for replacement of the 3-in-1 HVAC and dehumidifying unit in the village’s fifteen year old Water Treatment Plant. “Right now we’ve got water sweat dripping off of everything, and the units are very costly. The unit that is in there now was put in the building when it was built in 2003. We had some repairs on the unit when we had the fire and they replaced a few parts. Now the compressor is out of it. They went to put the compressor in and the coils have pinholes all throughout it. The compressor, the coils and the labor would be a little over $8,000, and the rest of the system will still be a 2003 model. You have that option, or a brand new system can be put in, but the village is looking at a little over $31,000. Do we want to throw possibly good money after bad or bite the bullet and start over fresh?”

The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the seeking of bids, which is required for all projects that have an estimated cost of more than $20,000, for a brand new HVAC and dehumidifying system for the water treatment plant. The next village Trustee session will be a Committee of the Whole meeting on Thursday, July 19th at 6:30 p.m at Village Hall.