April 13, 2022 - Supervisor's Column Sandbar Park Update
In last week's Supervisor's Corner article, I gave a glimpse of the "busy April 2022" we would have on this project. We have reached several milestones as we continue to move towards the revitalization of Sandbar Park.
On Thursday, April 7th, the Webster Town Board awarded the construction project to Keeler Construction. Based on that award by the Town, Keeler will soon begin work on the Lake Road improvements, REDI projects and core park upgrades. Keeler will also be performing phase 2 of the Monroe County Lake Road improvement project in spring/summer of 2022. The County project will run from Forest Lawn to Bay Road. The Town REDI project picks up where the County project leaves off at Bay and runs west through Sandbar Park. It is hoped that with one contractor, Keeler doing both the County and Town projects on Lake Road this spring/summer, that efficiencies will be attained that minimize the disruption to traffic. Preliminary construction work will begin as planned in mid-April; updates and progress on the improvements will be shared on the Town website. Please be aware the entire Sandbar Park location will be closed to the public starting Monday, April 18th for the foreseeable future.
On Friday April 8th, the open submission period for the Expressions of Interest (EOI) for restauranteurs closed. The EOI process was assisted with a community citizen committee that identified key attributes of a future restaurant to be constructed within Sandbar Park. The EOI was meant to be a first step in selecting a restauranteur who would assist in the design and potential construction of the building. The response to the EOI resulted with one submission prior to the 4:00 PM deadline on Friday, April 8.
The next step will be for the Town to review the submission and determine if there is sufficient substance to meet with this potential vendor. This meeting will be an opportunity for the restaurateur to expand on their vision, allow the Town to ask questions, to clearly envision the long-term operation and ensure the restaurateur meets the amenities identified by the citizen committee. The final step will be to formally require a Request for Proposal to the Town and begin negotiations on a licensing agreement. The Town is committed to the process in selecting a restaurateur who will enhance Sandbar Park and create an environment that is truly unique.
Tentative plan is to have a groundbreaking ceremony the week of April 25-29th at Sandbar Park that would be attended by Federal, State, County, Town, and Village elected officials and dignitaries. Stay tuned for more information on the specific date and time of this event.
Finally, I would like to thank those individuals and business who shared their feedback and interest in this process. We are fortunate in Webster to have an amazing public location providing the community with access to not only one BUT two bodies of water, the natural scenery at this location is truly spectacular. Once the renovations and upgrades are completed, Sandbar Park will become a destination for the community and something to pass along to future generations to enjoy. As always, feel free to call me at 585-872-7068 or e-mail me at supervisor@ci.webster.ny.us
To view the June 2021 Information Session Presentations, please select: June 2021 LINK
Residents can view the presentation documents, including in-depth information about plans for the Bayside Restaurant.
Please review these documents prior to submitting comments, as many of your questions may already be answered in these documents.
February 24, 2021 Update from Supervisor Flaherty Bright Future for Lake Road and Sandbar Park
The next few years will be quite active on Lake Road from Pellett road heading west. Three following major projects will be initiated in the order they will be conducted.
PROJECT 1: A Monroe County project that looks to start in the Spring of 2021. It entails the rehabilitation and widening of approximately 2.3 miles of Lake Road between Bay Road and Pellett Road. The proposed work consists of milling and resurfacing the existing pavement, full depth shoulder widening, drainage improvements, removal of an abandoned railroad overpass and replacement of the Shipbuilder’s Creek culvert. Isolated areas of full depth reconstruction will be needed to correct horizontal curvature and ensure the pavement section is adequate for the life of the project. Widening the shoulders will require the relocation and redesign of the storm water system. Drainage inlets will be located along the roadway curb or gutter. A combination of closed systems and a few open ditches will be used. The abandoned railroad bridge currently carries the Hojack Trail over Lake Road. As part of this project, the bridge will be removed, and a new at-grade posted crosswalk for the Hojack Trail crossing Lake Road will be established. The existing Shipbuilder’s Creek culvert will be replaced with a similar 3-sided precast concrete structure founded on rock. The new structure will be slightly wider to accommodate the proposed shoulders.
PROJECT 2: The Town of Webster has obtained approximately $3 million in New York State REDI grants for shoreline resiliency. Two of the main uses of this grant money are for: 1. moving a portion of Lake Road near Oklahoma Beach to the north to create space on the south for a walkway, and 2. building a resiliency type break wall along the bay at Sandbar Park. 60% of the engineering has been accomplished on these REDI grant projects and it is hoped in Spring 2022 they will be initiated.
PROJECT 3: Restructuring of Sandbar Park. This Town project was first discussed 3 - 4 years ago. A citizen committee was formed to come up with some ideas and a public presentation of the various architect renditions was done in late 2018. Then in the spring of 2019 the water levels rose and flooded Sandbar Park and portions of Lake Road. That resulted in both a) the Town Sandbar Park project being put on hold and b) the State offering REDI grants for shoreline resiliency. The citizen committee has been reconvened and is trying to marry architectural plans for Sandbar Park with the road movement and break wall of the REDI grant projects. The rest of 2021 will be an "active and exciting time" for the plans for Sandbar Park. If everything goes well, it is very possible the final plans will have construction initiated in parallel with the REDI granted projects in 2022.