Hamilton Park Renovation Update

Last week, members of the HPNA met with the Division of Architecture to review overall progress for the Hamilton Park renovation. Soil contamination notwithstanding, the renovation of the park appears to be going well. A great deal of progress has been made and the renovation is on schedule to complete by late fall (although the schedule may be impacted by the contamination clean-up).

The following tasks have been completed:

• Tree removal
• Underground flood basins
• Curb and Sidewalks on 8th, 9th & West Hamilton
• Water & Sewer work on 8th Street
• Underground Electrical Work
• Drainage & Inlet work
• Light pole foundations
• Sanitary Sewer lines
• Wet taps & Water lines
  

Which leaves:

• Fountain (partially complete)
• Spray Park (partially complete)
• Light poles (partially complete)
• Dog Runs (partially complete)
• Basketball & Tennis courts (soil contaminants need to be addressed first)
• Playgrounds (soil contaminants need to be addressed first)
• Amphitheater (soil contaminants need to be addressed first)
• Gazebo & Community Garden (partially complete)
• Fencing
• Interior sidewalks
• Fine grading
• Landscaping & cleanup
  

During our meeting we were shown the construction samples of the walkways as well as the plans for both the fountain and community billboards which will be at each corner of the park.







Trees:
One item of concern which came out of the meeting involves a few trees which are either diseased, at the end of their natural lives, or severely damaged in the thunderstorms we had a couple of weeks ago. Two of the trees are on the path leading in from the southeast corner of the park (on the right), one is in the large dog run, one is near the gazebo (directly to the west of it), and the remaining two near the center of the park. The City has reiterated their commitment save trees wherever possible and will replace each of the trees which must be removed. A full copy of the Arborist's reports can be found at the bottom of this post.





Soil Contamination:

The other, more pressing, issue is the soil contamination. Results indicate several areas of concern which contain elevated levels of lead, arsenic and hydrocarbons (which are most likely due to the combustion of organic fuels).

There are several options for addressing the contaminants which range from capping to full remediation (removal). Each method has its own cost and impact ranging from $75k for capping to $500 - $750k for full removal. Capping will have with no impact to trees or the park renovation time line, while full remediation will cause the loss of approximately 24 trees, and a delay on the completion of park renovation.

The city has asked for community input regarding the clean-up decision. The Division of Architecture along with Councilman Fulop has arranged for an environmental consultant to be present at September’s HPNA meeting to present the findings and discuss the possible solutions.

Please join us this Wednesday, September 2nd at 7:45PM at Cordero Elementary School (located at 158 Erie Street, on the corner of 10th Street) for this very important meeting/update.


Thanks,
Olu
Aug 11, 2009 Hamilton Park - Arborist Update June 18, 2009 Hamilton Park - Arborist Report