COLUSA, CA (MPG) – After several years in the making, Colusa officials on Aug. 24 launched the opening of the long-awaited splash park at AB Davison Park.
The new water park, which was the most requested city amenity in 2007 and 2020, features a “duck” sprayer, several “spray way” arches, a “fill and spill” bucket water drop, a ladybug spout, and a tractor sprayer, and was installed just in time for the end of summer.
The Colusa City Council in 2021 authorized the splash park to be constructed next to the swimming pool, using the city’s $177,000 per capita allocation from Proposition 68, a Park and Water Bond Act of 2018.
City officials had hoped to have the park operational last summer, but the project was fraught with delays, including supply chain issues, created by the pandemic, and the escalating costs for construction, due to inflation.
“This has been a little ways in the making,” said Colusa Mayor Greg Ponciano, before cutting a ceremonial ribbon during the brief ceremony. “We had to jump through a few hoops to get it.”
The new water park is designed primarily for younger children, ages 3 and up, and is self-activated by a “touch and go” bollard. The pre-set timer allows the water to run for three minutes before requiring a child or parent to reactivate the park by touching the button. The park timer is also pre-set to operate only during specific hours and to shut off completely at dark, so as not to waste water, officials said.
City Public Works staff – along with volunteers – did the primary construction work to install the prefabricated water features.
“We found out pretty quickly that you can’t build a splash pad for $177,000,” Ponciano said. “With economics the way that they are, our street department guys jumped in to do labor, our water department guys were here every day, and we had multiple volunteers to make this happen.”
Ponciano thanked City Manager Jesse Cain not only for overseeing the project, but for working the backhoe to get the splashpad concrete poured and the water features installed while temperatures were still warm enough for kids to enjoy the sprayers.
Rather than recirculating chemically treated water (like a swimming pool), Colusa’s splash park uses groundwater (potable tap water), which will drain into the city’s sewer system to be treated at the wastewater treatment plant, before it is released for crop irrigation purposes. The various water features release differing amounts of water, officials said. The duck sprayer spurts out 13 gallons per minute; the tractor spays about 50 gallons of water per minute.
The park is ADA accessible, has no-slip surfaces, and features spray equipment that comes in a canvas of colors, shapes, textures, and light.
More than a dozen kids of all ages took advantage of the sprayers to cool off on a hot Thursday afternoon.
“Anytime you can do something positive for the community is a great day,” Ponciano said.