Park Board OK’s two $79,000 contracts, including one for emergency golf-course repairs

The Wilmette Park Board on Monday unanimously approved emergency spending after a well at the Wilmette Golf Club experienced what officials referred to as a “fairly catastrophic maintenance issue” in August.

The $79,000 contract with Water Well Solutions Illinois was approved following an update from Adam Kwiatkoski, the golf club’s general manager, on the replacement of the equipment within the well.

He said the process “wasn’t as easy as we initially hoped.”

Kwiatkoski went into further detail in his memo to the board, saying that in August the motor at the bottom of the 800-foot well, which was installed in 1994, stopped working and “grounded out.”

Because of the depth, he said a crane was needed to lift out the pipe and equipment and install the new one.

“When lifting the old one, it broke, and a ‘fishing’ team was needed to retrieve the broken piece and old motor from the bottom,” Kwiatkoski wrote in his memo.

He said the well is now working normally.

Park Board President Patrick Lahey commended the work of Kwiatkoski and his team, saying it “must have been incredibly stressful” for everyone involved dealing with a “fairly catastrophic maintenance issue.”

“Kudos to you and everybody for dealing with a big curveball,” he said.

Commissioner Julia Goebel asked Kwiatkoski about any preventative maintenance that had been done on the well.

He responded that while he wasn’t familiar with any preventative maintenance measures other than irrigation work, because of its age, “it was only a matter of time” before something happened.

But he added that, in the future, he and his staff will be working with the well repair company to potentially look at preventative maintenance measures. Ideally, that work would be done in the offseason.

Commissioners approve Centennial floor bid

In addition to funding the emergency repairs, the Park Board also unanimously approved a contract to replace the floor at the Centennial Recreation Complex.

Chicago Flooring, of Park Ridge, was awarded a $79,000 contract for the work, which is planned to be completed later this fall.

The contract supports flooring to the main entryway and hallway that leads to the locker rooms.

Josh Wallace, superintendent of parks and planning, said in addition to the front entryway and locker rooms, the proposed new floor will then continue to the lower level, down the ramp and into the lobby where the ice-skating area is.

He said the tile is both “durable” and “slip-resistant.”

Chicago Flooring’s bid also included an alternate amount of $7,300, which would have added the Wilmette logo to the floor; however, staff did not recommend including that expenditure, and the Park Board supported the bid as recommended.

Commissioner Patrick Duffy was supportive of not including the logo installation.

“I thought that was a great move, because what if the logo changes?” he said. “Then we’ve got to rip up that floor.”

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