The Tom Waters City Public Works Committee voted Thursday to place Amendment No. 2 to the service provider agreement with Robert W. Droll Landscape Architects, PS for the Trails and Park master plan on the Sept. 16 city council consent calendar with a recommendation the council approve and authorize the mayor to sign.

Jared Verhey, capital projects manager, said the Trails and Park project began as a two-phase effort: a master planning phase that identified park amenities and public preferences, followed by a design phase to produce construction-ready plans. “This master plan is effectively what came out of the first phase of the project, identifying kind of a rough layout for the park,” Verhey said. He described planned amenities including a play area, fitness stations, a bicycle pump track, restroom and picnic shelters, a basketball court, a pickleball court, active lawn/open space, trails and opportunities for interpretive art.

Amendment No. 2 would add $248,145 to the agreement, increasing the contract to $286,249, and extend the agreement through Dec. 31, 2027 to complete design. Verhey told the committee the phase-1 master planning work cost $38,104 and that the phase-2 amendment will produce final plans, specifications and documents necessary to bid and build the park. He said design completion is expected in 2026 and that construction is likely in 2027.

Committee members asked about trails and walking loops; Verhey pointed to perimeter trails shown in the master plan layout and said the service-provider work will refine final alignment and amenities. He noted the project is listed in the city’s capital facilities plan as project GGO7 and is funded through Metropolitan Park District funds.

A committee motion to place the amendment on the Sept. 16 consent calendar with a recommendation to approve and authorize the mayor to sign was moved and seconded and approved by voice vote.

The committee’s action forwards to the city council the request to approve the expansion of professional services for design work; final authorization and any spending beyond the contract will occur only if the council follows the committee recommendation and authorizes the mayor’s signature.