Roswell notifies council of contractor award for Roswell Area Park pond rehabilitation after embankment safety concerns

At its Sept. 23 committee meeting, the City of Roswell notified the mayor and council that it has awarded Gradeco Incorporated a construction contract in the amount of $1,981,825.60 for rehabilitation of the Roswell Area Park pond and requested a project budget authorization of $2,628,125.

The notification came during an information presentation by Bridal Watson, the city’s director of Environmental Public Works, who said staff closed the embankment to the public Sept. 15 after observing what he described as “an embankment that's an active failure mode.” Watson told the committee the city had accelerated procurement and declared an emergency because staff judged there was insufficient time to delay for a standard bid cycle.

Why it matters: Watson said the pond is part of a 2022 voter-approved bond program and that the embankment instability presents a near-term public-safety risk along a popular walking path. The city is combining embankment stabilization, replacement or improvement of a modular block retaining wall, and dredging the pond to improve habitat and (with modest design changes) create regional stormwater detention capacity for about 52 acres that drain to the pond.

Key details: Watson said the pond was originally built in the 1950s as an agricultural impoundment; the city has no original design drawings. Staff reported a June 2025 geotechnical evaluation and daily monitoring during the summer, then visible deterioration in September. The project will remove 104 trees (57 of them on the embankment and 47 along walking paths), with at least 30 trees to be replanted; Watson said all replacement plantings will be native species. He said there is a wildlife-relocation plan and that Aquatic Environmental Services is identified for aquatic/wildlife work; the city consulted the University of Georgia Extension on relocation methods.

Budget and schedule: The agenda listed the construction award at $1,981,825.60 and a total project budget authorization of $2,628,125. Watson said the city is carrying a sizable contingency — generally 25–30% on earthen embankment projects — because unknown conditions often emerge once excavation begins. He said fencing would be installed the week after the meeting, dewatering and wildlife relocation would begin at the end of that week, and construction would follow. When asked about completion timing, staff said substantial completion is targeted for the end of next summer.

Stormwater and downstream benefits: Watson said modest design changes can give the pond detention capacity and water-quality credits for future development within the 52-acre drainage area; he noted the Woodstock Multi-Use Trail project has expressed interest in purchasing stormwater credits from the pond project.

Action taken: The committee received the presentation as an information item; no motion or vote was required or taken on the pond item.

What remains open: Watson said the final landscaping plan was paused to prioritize immediate stabilization. He also noted the exact extent of underground deterioration is unknown until excavation proceeds, which is why contingency funds are in the budget.

Speakers who addressed this topic at the committee meeting included Bridal Watson, director of Environmental Public Works; Sharon Izzo, deputy city administrator and chair of the committee; and multiple council members who asked clarifying questions about visibility, playground equipment replacement and schedule.