Festus council discusses park improvements, splash pad operations and sewer capacity needs

Council members used the meeting’s reports and old-business time to discuss multiple park-related items including construction at the barn, the new splash pad, restroom conditions at park fields and sewer infrastructure needs.

Councilman Boyer, Cook and others noted active construction at the barn and remodeling work near West Main; Councilman Cook said the barn interior had been remodeled and expected to open in the coming weeks. Council members asked about restroom conditions near the soccer fields and the need to study sewer access before large upgrades. "There's no gravity sewer out there. That's the problem I have with that... Eventually, we're gonna want restaurants in there. So that's something we'll we'll get to," a council member said.

Public works and utilities staff described existing park restroom buildings as vault toilets or on small residential grinder pumps and said the pumps are aging and being pushed beyond their design limits. One staff member explained options: install a larger grinder pump (50-horsepower) to route flows to the lagoon lift station, or bore under the road to connect to a different collection point. "These little 5 horsepower pumps are going, nah. I don't wanna do it anymore," a staff member said, describing failures in small residential grinder pumps.

Council and staff also discussed the splash pad's expected operational schedule and concessions. Staff said the city has a longstanding agreement with a local operator but plans to issue a request for qualifications (RFQ) to seek contractors for daily operations as the splash pad moves toward a seven-days-per-week schedule. Councilman Cook suggested contracting out cleaning and sanitizing services for the splash pad.

Council asked staff to explore engineering and cost estimates, include the needs in upcoming budgets and to coordinate a timeline so restroom and sewer work can be prioritized with planned park improvements.