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Lake Worth Beach delays Bryant Park fitness-court purchase after maintenance and sight-line concerns
Summary
Commissioners questioned long-term maintenance plans, sight-line impacts and vendor "grant" mechanics for a proposed Bryant Park fitness court priced at roughly $170,000 plus installation; after debate they tabled final approval, asking staff for site layout and artist renderings on April 21.
Commissioners for the City of Lake Worth Beach on April 7 debated whether to approve a purchase order for a new fitness court at Bryant Park and ultimately voted to table the item until the commission’s April 21 meeting.
The purchase order as described by staff included a $170,000 cost for the fitness equipment and roughly $30,000 for installation; staff said concrete and related site work could raise the total all-in cost to about $245,000. Stewart Sorensen, the city staff member leading the item, said staff had worked through specifications but that installation requires specialized vendors: “No. It’s too, it’s too technical,” he said when asked whether in-house crews could perform the work.
The most persistent objections came from commissioners concerned with upkeep and visual impacts. Commissioner Anthony Segarich said the city has not demonstrated consistent maintenance of similar assets: “I am very hesitant at this point to put more money into something like this when we have not demonstrated we can maintain what we have,” he said, urging a maintenance plan before spending more taxpayer dollars. Other commissioners raised sight-line concerns about an 8-foot wall associated with the installation and asked for final placement drawings so residents can see how views and paths would be affected.
Vice Mayor Sarah Maliga and other commissioners also pressed staff to clarify a $30,000 "grant" tied to the vendor and how that public‑private partnership operates; Maliga said the city must insist on detailed, line‑item invoices before paying contractors. In response, staff offered to return on April 21 with artist renderings, a geometric layout of the fitness court, and a clear, itemized accounting of completed work and pending costs.
After discussion, Commissioner Mimi May made a motion to table the purchase order until April 21 so commissioners and staff could walk the site, review artistic layouts and finalize a maintenance approach. The motion passed unanimously.
The item will return to the April 21 agenda with renderings, a recommended placement plan and an itemized cost breakdown.
