Completion of new Marysville park amphitheater facing month delay this summer
Marysville’s long-awaited new amphitheater in the city park is going to take a few weeks longer before it’s event ready for the public.
City Council first OK’d a $547,600 bid last October to construct a new structure in place of the bandshell that once stood centrally at Marysville City Park. And the contract completion date was originally set for June 15.
However, on Friday, City Manager Randy Fernandez said, “We ran into a couple of snags.”
Council members approved a 45-day contract extension with contractor Martin Construction after officials said unforeseen building materials were discovered left underground for potentially decades.
The move added another $24,900 in cost, extending the project agreement until July 31. The approval also accounts for unforeseen soil conditions, and the contract allows for deeper and larger footings on site.
“We have our first concert on Friday, Aug. 9. And I think it’s going to be a Bob Seger tribute band,” Fernandez said Friday. “Our plan is we will be having that. I’m 101% sure. No delays, and we’re going to try to turn that into a community night. Meaning, we’ve got people that will sponsor. If you come, you’ll get a water, a bag chips, and a hotdog as part of our ongoing centennial celebration. So, that’s our plan right now.”
Earlier in the week, Fernandez told council members that city administration has had the OK to work with any cost discrepancies within $15,000, and that the issue was found when crews tore up cement of the old bandshell, leading to the additional funds above the threshold.
Once they got down 10 to 14 feet, he said they found more needed to be done to stabilize the property for the amphitheater.
The contractor came back and asked for another month, Fernandez said, pointing to the insurance of additional construction days through July to ensure completion before event plans in August.
“Damages start as of Aug. 1,” the city manager said Friday. “They owe us money after that.” Damages are $1,000 a day.
Major construction on site picked up earlier on the amphitheater, which will sit at the base of the same incline of the old bandshell. While it was rendered to feature the same type of American flag feature as the former structure, the amphitheater will have a few things the bandshell didn’t, including restrooms, storage, and places for performers to dress.
Officials have said they hoped to capitalize on additional outdoor entertainment, including theater groups.
Most of the funding for the new building came from a share of St. Clair County’s American Rescue Plan Act dollars, administered by then-county commissioner Duke Dunn.
Now a council member, Dunn, who has a background in construction, said last Monday he visited the site.
“The conditions are real,” he said. “There appears to be an old building and something that was there at one time that they’re coming across now. He is going to be forced to go quite a bit deeper for his footings and fill material, so I think what he’s asking for is justified.”
Fernandez said the city’s engineer also looked at the issue.
“This was not picked up because nowhere in the records did it show there was possibly a building there in the last hundred years,” he said. “It’s all brick. Crumbled up brick. Something had to be there.”
Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Completion of new Marysville park amphitheater facing month delay this summer
