The city of South Haven will apply for a Michigan Department of Natural Resources Spark grant for $276,000 to help fund the Kids Corner Park improvement project. Public works director Bill Hunter says its due to construction costs rising from what had been budgeted.
“When we applied for our grant funding back in 2018, we applied for $550,000,” said Hunter. “Well, $550,000 fast forward to 2022, is not the same. We are looking at construction price increases of over 30, 35%.”
He says they could do it for $550,000, but, “you’re going to have a much smaller structure than what you see right now.”
The wooden structure will be replaced by a composite structure built to last for several decades. Hunter says the wooden structure there now is about 20 years old and will need to be replaced soon. He added the discussions on making renovations have been ongoing since 2014.
