Veterans Memorial Park in downtown Fairbanks will receive a long-overdue makeover this summer after the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly Finance Committee approved the bid award on Thursday.
David Bredlie, the Fairbanks North Star Borough public works director, told the Assembly that most of the work will take place west of the memorial space that faces Cushman Street.
“The gravel paths are going away, along with the existing benches and some trees,” Bredlie said. “The existing wooden gazebo gets torn down.”
The borough selected Fairbanks-based GHEMM Solutions to complete the project for $1.03 million — lower than the estimated $1.29 million. The $1.03 million price tag includes the full package, including optional features.
The new design includes a concrete plaza with a fixed pavilion surrounded by bricks and a history kiosk.
Bredlie said the contractor will install new concrete pathways that comply with Americans with Disabilities Act standards, along with the new plaza near the memorial.
Other features will include ADA-accessible picnic tables and four park benches.
Two flagpoles will be installed on the memorial site — one for the POW (Prisoner of War) flag and one representing the U.S. Space Force, the country’s newest military branch.
Some “additive alternates,” or optional upgrades the borough could include with additional funding, would have included landscaping and more benches.
The original base bid included grills, but they were removed from the design on Thursday.
A few veterans expressed concern about some of the proposed features, including the grills and picnic tables.
At the April 10 Assembly meeting, veteran Walter Watts told the Assembly that picnic tables and grills “were not part of the original plan.”
“They (designers) are not thinking of it as a memorial area for veterans,” Watts said. He emphasized that Veterans Memorial Park is meant to honor veterans and the families of deceased veterans and service members.
“They don’t want people running around, grilling barbecues,” Watts said. “The borough has beautiful parks, whether it’s in Fairbanks, North Pole or Salcha.”
Watts also expressed concern that homeless individuals might use the grills as a heat source during the winter, potentially disrupting Veterans Day or other winter ceremonies.
At Thursday’s Assembly committee meeting, Borough Mayor Grier Hopkins said he engaged with veterans at the Fairbanks Vet Center to gather feedback.
“Everyone I spoke with supported grills and having a park that welcomes the people,” Hopkins said. He defended the benches and tables as places for older veterans to sit and rest, but recommended removing the grills from the design. He also noted that the benches will be designed with center armrests to prevent people from lying down on them.
Parks and Recreation Director Matthew Boyer said community members and organizations will be able to sponsor features like benches, tables, annual landscaping, and bricks inscribed with the names of military service members. These bricks will be installed around the pavilion and stage in the park’s new plaza.
Sponsorships range from a $200 inscribed brick to larger items like tables and benches. Boyer noted that the sponsorships apply only to features already included in the final plans, not additional ones.
He said this is the first time the sponsorship program will be used since the Assembly approved it last year. The program’s overall goal is to benefit all borough parks and recreation facilities by helping cover upkeep costs and funding future improvements.
The Kiwanis Club of Fairbanks has already offered to sponsor the stage in the new plaza for $60,000. All sponsorships require Assembly approval.
“No money has exchanged hands yet,” Boyer said.
Bredlie said the borough received three bids, including from Alcan Builders and Bliss Construction.
“If GHEMM had not bid, Alcan would have been the low bidder, and we would not have been able to afford the added alternatives,” he said.
The borough budgeted $1.8 million over two appropriations, with about 75% expected to be spent on construction. Because of the favorable bids, 26% of the project budget has been reallocated to contingency funds to cover any cost overruns.
Construction is expected to begin in the next month. Bredlie said most of the work will be completed by July 12.
