Brainerd Approves Additional $58,000 for Park Under Construction

The city of Brainerd has approved additional money to go towards work on a new park sitting on the Mississippi riverfront.

Ground was broken on the Mississippi Landing Trailhead Park in early June, and last month, Brainerd received a request for an additional $58,000 to go towards construction, observation, material testing, and project management. The city requested that before the money was granted they received a dedicated rundown of how each dollar was being spent.

At the last Park Board meeting, design and consulting firm WSB said that an extra $58,000 was needed for different contractor fees. After original estimates of the park came in at $2.75 million, the project has moved along smoothly, coming in under budget. But at the meeting, some board members believed these additional fees were a ploy to keep the project from staying under budget.

“This seems convenient, this seems like a dollar amount that is very specifically tied to the amount that’s available and that was under budget,” said Brainerd mayor Dave Badeaux, “and although this is a scenario in which work has been done, these are the taxpayers’ dollars, and I will always fall back on the fact that it is our job to be as prudent about any dollars we are spending. And so therefore, I will concede some of that, but I just want to make sure that I am revoicing those same opinions, that this feels wrong.”

The board did make a motion and approve the $58,000 in full at the meeting.