FORT PIERCE — Visitors to the popular Jaycee Park along the Indian River Lagoon will soon have more places to escape the summer heat and tropical sun, thanks to a partnership between the city and the Fort Pierce Redevelopment Agency to install additional shade structures.

City Clerk Linda Cox introduced the related agenda item during the Fort Pierce Commission meeting on July 6.

“This is Resolution 26-R40 entering into an interlocal funding agreement between the City of Fort Pierce and the Fort Pierce Redevelopment Agency whereby the Fort Pierce Redevelopment Agency will provide funding for the Jaycee Park Improvement Project,” she said. “The City of Fort Pierce will be responsible for project management.”

Community and Economic Development Director Shyanne Harnage then provided more details on the $110,000 in improvements slated for the heavily utilized park at the intersection of South Ocean and Melaleuca drives on the shores of the Indian River Lagoon.

“We’ve spoken about this project mostly with your FPRA hats on,” she told commissioners as she pointed to an overhead map of the site. “This is a partnership between the city and the FPRA to do some improvements at Jaycee Park. We’re looking to do a sunsail shade over the playground that the Kiwanis Club recently improved. It’s a beautiful park and playground, but we would like to do some shade there. We will also be replacing the roofs at the five small pavilions along the coastline and then the three large pavilions here in the center.”

Emphasizing that two of Jaycee Park’s pavilions had already been renovated, Harnage alluded to a separate interlocal agreement with the Fort Pierce Utilities Authority that will authorize that agency’s completion of a mural on its water tank in the park

“It’s going to be starting Aug. 1,” she explained. “That’s a separate agreement, but I just wanted to point out the comprehensive improvements. This is coming to you all first and will also come to you at the next FPRA Board meeting.”

Commissioner Arnold Gaines immediately posed a clarification question.

“With the large pavilions, are we only doing the roof?” he asked.

“That’s all we’ve bid so far,” Harnage replied. “Those are the improvements that were identified by Public Works that were in need. We could do beyond that, but it’s not in this agreement.”

Commissioner Gaines also expressed a concern about the condition of the barbecue grills located in the pavilions slated to get new roofs.

“This is a heavily used park by everybody in St. Lucie County,” he said. “So, when we do these roofs, look over at those little grills we’ve got standing up there and make sure those grills are not falling over or are about to fall over. I know I’ve seen them leaning, and the last thing I need is somebody to put charcoal on the grill and the next thing we know we got a fire burning down a roof that we just put on. So let’s look at the grills and come back and see what we can do with those.”

Yes sir,” Harnage responded. “I’ll bring that up to Public Works for maintenance.”

The City Commission then voted unanimously to approve the interlocal agreement with the FPRA. The FPRA Board was slated to take up the same request on July 14, as well as awarding the $49,975 bid to Right Now Roofing, LLC for the pavilion roof replacement as part of its Consent Agenda. Also on the FPRA’s Consent Agenda was a request to approve Stuart native and Central Florida-based artist Christian Stanley for the Jaycee Park Water Tank Mural Project valued at $60,000.

The planned improvements support Goal 20 of the FPRA Redevelopment Plan, which encourages the enhancement of public and city-owned spaces through the addition and improvement of amenities that promote quality of life and recreational opportunities.