FAIR OAKS, CA (MPG) - At their meeting on April 5, the Measure J Bond Oversight Committee (BOC) reappointed members whose terms ended this spring. Terms are for one year, and members can serve up to five consecutive terms. Terms ended in March for BOC member Keith Walter and in April for BOC Chair Gary Juels, Vice-Chair Amy Larsen, and members Justin Drake, Barbara Sestito, Dana Woodworker-Negri, and Kim Sarvkovich.  All stated their desire to continue on the committee and were recommended for reappointment—to be confirmed by the Fair Oaks Recreation and Park District (FORPD) Board of Directors at their next meeting. The terms of the remaining members expire this fall, at which time they can be considered for reappointment as well.  

FORPD Administrator Mike Aho said that the bid schedule is currently on track for the Village/Plaza/Amphitheatre improvements, with District staff planning to open and review all the bids in mid-April before submitting their recommendation to the Board.

One concern in the bid process is that the cost estimation for the project was done four weeks ago, and with labor and materials shortages, Aho said things are “volatile.” But he thinks the general contractors will bid near the estimate to remain competitive, since those shortages mean there are less construction jobs available for them to bid on.

Another concern was that SMUD, which provides electricity to all the District facilities in the Village, recently informed staff that the circuit there is overloaded and cannot accommodate the power demand required in the improvement plans. It is a frustrating issue for the District, said Aho, because SMUD reviewers approved the project plans and are only now—just shortly before bids are due and with construction scheduled to begin by the end of the month—informing them that the circuit can’t meet the need.  “Someone dropped the ball,” said Aho, “but it wasn’t us.”

An emergency meeting was held later that week to figure out how to proceed, and in a follow-up phone call, Aho said there weren’t any good options, since stringing additional wires overhead isn’t aesthetically pleasing, and trenching under the road would destroy existing decorative bricking. In the end, they determined that adding trenching to the project wasn’t logistically or financially realistic while in the middle of the bid process, so staff worked quickly to get the overhead lines added as an addendum to the bid documents.

Two out of the six prequalified general contractors submitted project bids by the April 12 deadline. And while Aho said he can’t be sure, he does suspect that the last-minute addendum might have resulted in less bids being submitted since the contractors may not have had enough time to adjust their bids accordingly before the deadline.

Streng Park, which was partly funded by Measure J and has been open for recreation since the ribbon-cutting ceremony last November, will soon be officially marked as a completed project. The park sign has been installed but is awaiting a minor repair.  

Aho said the District plans to submit Streng Park to the California Recreation and Park District Association for an award for park design. “It is a very, very unique park for that size. … I can’t say how happy I am with how this came out. It’s just an amazing park,” said Aho, who views Streng Park as the model for how a small, challenging space can successfully be transformed into a unique space for recreation.

Aho explained that the draft lease agreement sent over the San Juan Unified School District (SJUSD) for the La Vista property did not include terms that FORPD considered to be essential—such as a lengthy lease period and FORPD responsibility for maintenance and reservations of the softball fields. The FORPD attorney drafted another agreement with those necessary terms outlined, which has been sent back to the SJUSD. Aho said it seems to now be moving along relatively quickly without any major changes expected from SJUSD.

BOC member Garett McDermid asked about next steps for Phoenix Park if the softball fields move forward at La Vista. Aho said that any plans for Phoenix won’t be considered until after the bids come in for the Village/Plaza/Amphitheatre project, at which point they will know how much Measure J money remains for other projects.

But Aho said the priority at Phoenix is to address the parking issue, and the quickest and most cost-effective method would be to pave the existing dirt lot to maximize that space. Paving that lot won’t fully address the problem, but would be a start, said Aho. And because it is a dirt lot, it needs to be paved no matter what, so it won’t require any additional community outreach if that project moves forward. But any additional parking improvement projects at Phoenix would require community outreach to create a master plan for the park that can be followed as funding becomes available.

Additional funding for Phoenix could come from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which initially funded development of the park. LWCF grants come with restrictions in perpetuity that limit what can be developed on the property, allowing only outdoor recreation in the space, which meets the District’s vision for Phoenix.

The next BOC meeting is scheduled for May 3.