On Tuesday Ruben Wall, director of the town’s parks, recreation and cultural resources department, said all the rain this spring combined with rain and sub-freezing weather over the winter mean there is no definite date for the Holding Park Aquatic Center on South Main Street and West Holding Avenue to be complete. The good news is the contractor can finish the work as soon as there is a week with sun and no rain.
The aquatic center sits in a low area, the press release said, but it is really a hole with at least one spring that created a lot of muddy fun for children back in the 1970s. Trees surround and shade the area. Although the contractor Harrod and Associates Constructors, has pumped the site several times and worked weekends to keep up some progress, the next stage of work is at a standstill until there is dry weather.
That next phase, the final one includes pouring the concrete pool deck, installing fencing and applying plaster on the pool surface. Despite the weather obstacles, Harrod and Associates has constructed the new pump house, constructed the pool shells and installed the shade structures (permanent umbrellas), pool coping and two waterslides. When the ground is too wet and muddy for outside work, the crews work in the pump house.
The project is about 80 percent complete, but the last 20 percent could be challenging. The ground has to dry enough to compact the subgrade properly and pour the concrete pool deck.
“We’re disappointed, but the weather is out of our control,” Wall said, noting the weather’s impact on his department’s athletic programming. Since April, the parks and rec department has canceled and rescheduled a total of 194 games in its athletic leagues due to inclement weather.
“Still, we’re trying to look at the big picture. The original Holding Park Pool served our community well for over 70 years. We want the new aquatic center to be here for another 70 years, so it’s important we build it the right way.”
Due to the unpredictability of the weather, Wall is reluctant to offer a timetable for the completion of the aquatic center until our area experiences a significant stretch of dry weather. Still, he remains committed to the project and what it will mean to Wake Forest.
“Our entire team is working as hard as we can to get the facility open as soon as we possibly can,” Wall said. “When that time comes, we look forward to inviting the entire community out for what will be an unforgettable grand opening and dedication ceremony.”
One Response
thats so much fluff…..I dont accept the contractors excuses for not finishing the job on time. You have to work with the weather and I’m sure all the other contractors in Raleigh never finish on time because of the weather ( tongue in cheek). We are so used to excuses by contractors that we accept them. The town should be fining them for every day past the missed May 31 deadline for opening….NO excuses get it done before there is another lost summer…This is what happens when government tries to get something done. If this were a private endeavor I guarantee this would have been finished on time….Just my thoughts on the state of affairs we are used to seeing!