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TO: Mayor Richard C. Irvin
FROM: Gio Santana, Superintendent of Parks
DATE: August 14th, 2020
SUBJECT:
A resolution to award McCarty Park Phase II improvements located in Ward 2 to BCI Burke in the amount of one hundred fifty five thousand, two hundred forty six dollars and zero cents ($155,246.00).
PURPOSE:
To upgrade McCarty Park with playground equipment to complement the existing splash pad. The playground is frequented by many children accompanied by their parents from the surrounding neighborhoods. McCarty Park sits in the middle of a high density area along with multiple day cares that are within walking distance from the playground. The improvements to the playground will include ADA accessibility which none of the other area playgrounds currently have. BCI Burk specializes in playgrounds emphasizing inclusivity and is currently completing renovations & improvements to the playground over at Hope D. Wall on the City's west side (ward 6) The City has purchased other inclusive play equipment from BCI Burke including ADA accessible swings for McCarty Park in 2019.
BACKGROUND:
McCarty Park in not only a Legacy Park but is also Aurora's oldest playground, originally platted back in 1835. Phase I of the playground renovations were completed back in 2009. Phase II has been in the works for years and approved as part of the 2020 budget.
City staff met with several vendors at the Illinois Parks and Recreation conference in January of 2020. Based on several options presented by various vendors we narrowed down the type of equipment we wanted to fit in with the motif of the playground. In March we started reaching out to vendors to inquire about our specific needs for the playground. However due to the pandemic only a few vendors responded. Options provided by BCI Burke were the ones that fit our needs the best, in addition to the fact that the equipment provided by Burke also matches the swing set purchased from them in 2019.
DISCUSSION:
Due to City ap...
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