WILTON – Selectpersons approved architectural designs for the Parks and Recreation Department office building, allowing the project to move forward with bid requests for construction. The building will serve as storage for ice skating equipment, in addition to serving as the main office for the department.
Diversified Drafting of Mt. Vernon was hired two months ago at the cost of $2,500 to come up with the design, which will be put out to bid in the next few weeks.
“I had my doubts about spending $2,500 for an engineer to do this, but he was worth every penny,” Parks and Recreation Director Frank Donald said.
Half of the funds for the draft were taken from an anonymous donation to the Recreation Department, while the other half used money from a trust fund that was established for the department several months ago, also funded by a large anonymous donation.
After going over details of the plan, and clarifying several questions from the board, selectpersons approved the design. The structure will be built on a concrete slab, which will include an 18-inch grid of rebar throughout. A storage area in the building, which will be unheated, should not affect the winter conditions of the floor due to the thickness of the slab, Donald said. The rest of the building will be heated with a system in the ceiling. The building will include running water and electricity.
Donald said he hopes construction will be finished by the third week in August.
In other business, the demolition of the Forster Mill Building is in the final stages of cleanup. Town Manager Rhonda Irish said that workers plan to have equipment removed by Friday. The crew has been working all week to sweep and cleanup the site, Irish said.
A walk through with the Selectboard and Ransom Consulting is proposed to take place in late June, followed by a workshop on next possible steps for the mill. Irish said she would like to hold a public meeting following the workshop to hear feedback and ideas from residents for the property.
In Frank We Trust. I appreciate all he does for the youth of our town. This construction project is sorely needed and will be a great improvement to Wilton’s finest asset — Kineowatha Park. Thank you, Selectboard, for recognizing the need for this and green-lighting the project.