Prospects soar for Mankato splash pad
Oct. 16—MANKATO — Mankatoans may have packed away their swimsuits for the year, but City Manager Susan Arntz is going to be spending at least part of the cold winter months learning about misting sprayers, arch jets, water tents and other splash pad options.
City leaders will also be examining potential locations for the spray-play area — but it is expected to be someplace other than Tourtellotte Park, home to the city's municipal pool.
"Where should it be and what should we have there?" Arntz said, summarizing the wintertime tasks.
For parents of young children, there's one other obvious question for the long-sought splash pad.
"That's the question I can't answer — when?" Arntz said.
But the prospects for a splash pad have been greatly enhanced by advice recently received from the city's financial consulting firm. Baker Tilley Municipal Advisors determined that federal COVID-19 relief dollars could be used for the $1.2 million renovation of the bathhouse at Tourtellotte Park.
That project was a top priority of the City Council when divvying up future revenue from the local sales tax, considered more of a pressing need than other water-related amenities. By using the federal dollars for the modernization of the bathhouse, $1.2 million in sales tax proceeds is available for items farther down the wish list.
That includes a zero-depth-entry pool at Tourtellotte, which will be more useful than the main pool for families with young children and some swimmers with disabilities.
The zero-depth pool might have a few small fountain features to entertain the kids, according to Arntz. But the larger splash pad — with multiple sprayers, misters, water-tents and other hydro zaniness — is to be located elsewhere in the city to spread the fun around.
A location closer to the fast-growing east side — as suggested by Council member Karen Foreman — seems likely.
Arntz said she's already talked to colleagues in Delano and Eagan who oversaw the installation of large splash pads in their city parks.
"I try not to tell them we're trying to avoid repeating their mistakes," she said. "I just tell them we want to learn from their experience."
Delano-based Landscape Structures, a company that offers everything from playgrounds to a variety of water-park features, is a possible supplier for a Mankato splash pad.
But Arntz indicated she and city staff won't be looking just at the AquaHedra misters, the spray-arch tunnels and other flashy above-ground features. They'll be checking out the guts of the system, too.
"I want to make sure we're not really acquiring a maintenance nightmare," she said.
