Sterling City Council approves naming city’s new riverfront park after wire mill

STERLING — Sterling’s new riverfront park has been named Northwestern Steel & Wire Park.

The resolution to name the multiage, accessible park after the former Northwestern Steel and Wire Mill was unanimously approved by the Sterling City Council during its Monday meeting. City attorney Tim Zollinger said the name was recommended by the Riverfront Foundation.

The park represents phase one of the city’s $300 million multiphase Riverfront Reimagined project. Phase one includes the construction of a restroom facility, installation of playground equipment and a splash pad, new sewer and water laterals, concrete and brick paver pathways, upgraded lighting, electrical and technology improvements, landscaping, and overall site grading.

Sterling City Manager Scott Shumard told Shaw Local that Phase 2 has been reconfigured to include construction of the park’s ice skating ribbon and fire pits, along with additional lighting, landscaping and drainage work for $1.1 million.

During Monday’s meeting, the City Council approved a motion to waive the competitive bidding process for purchasing equipment for the ice ribbon, citing a lead time of 16-20 weeks for the equipment. Despite that timeframe, city officials remain hopeful that the $655,000 ice ribbon will be finished in time for use this winter. However, they acknowledged that no guarantees can be made.

“We’ve secured the funding through the help of the Riverfront Foundation to make this park possible,” Shumard said. “We’re ordering this now so that hopefully we can put it in later this year. We need to get this in as soon as possible. The other part of it is there’s only so many companies that are out there that do this equipment.”

The Sterling Riverfront Foundation has been seeking investors to help fund the riverfront project. During a Riverfront Commission meeting on June 4, Sterling Alderman Josh Johnson said the Riverfront Foundation has received about $2.8 million in pledged donations, with $1.1 million in donations in the bank.

The Northwestern Steel & Wire Park and splash pad were originally projected to be finished toward the end of June. However, during the June 4 Riverfront Commission meeting, Strand Associates project manager Zach Simpson said the last progress meeting with contractors indicated the project was slightly behind schedule.

The delay was mostly due to masonry work, which took longer than expected and required most of the site space.

Despite those delays, Simpson said, contractors are continuing to make progress, the park’s shelter is starting to take shape, and most of the underground work is finished. Work on the park’s splash pad also is advancing.

Shumard said the last of the splash pad’s concrete has been poured but the city is still awaiting water hookup, and site access will not be immediately available due to the ongoing work around it. He said the park’s playground is still a few weeks out, and the amphitheater lawn and parking lot have been moved to Phase 3, citing financial limitations.

The hope is that site improvements to the park will be finished by early July, followed by the shelter in late August or early September.

In addition to the park, later phases could include worker apartments, a hotel and events center, and a rooftop bar/restaurant for the four buildings at the Lawrence site. That could be followed by market-rate apartments, a fitness center and yet-to-be-determined uses of the National site.