The construction of a pavilion at Kimmswick has been slightly delayed due to poor soil conditions and several weeks of rainy weather.
The pavilion, which is being built in a county park near the Mississippi River where riverboats can land at Kimmswick, is expected to be complete by August, Parks and Recreation Department Director Tim Pigg said on June 12.
“On Monday (June 10), we finalized the pouring of the concrete pad up there, which is a major stepping stone,” Pigg said. “The concrete is always the hardest part. Once that’s in, the rest falls in place. If it’s raining a little bit out there, it’s not going to slow things down.”
The concrete pad, and eventually the pavilion, are being built in Kimmswick Park, 5900 Mississippi St., and will include a playground, amphitheater and vehicle parking. A vault restroom has been installed in the park, and there is a 1-mile walking trail along the river.
Pigg said the construction of the 30-by-22-foot metal pavilion should begin within the next few weeks.
The pouring of the concrete pad was delayed by the discovery of loose, sandy soil at the construction site, Pigg said.
The Jefferson County Council voted unanimously May 13 to approve a change order for the project to allow an additional $12,926 to remove the unstable soil and add rock.
“The best way to say it was the soil would not be able to support the concrete or the structure the way it was,” Pigg said. “We had to get it out of the site. A guy was walking across (the site) with a stick and was able to push it down into the site by hand. That’s not conducive to something staying there for a long time.
“They could have built something on top of that, but then we’d probably be back here in two years, with everyone wondering why we did that.”
The county hired Integra Inc. in St. Charles in June 2023 to design and build the pavilion, and the original cost of the project was $176,925.
Funding for the project will be drawn from the $43.6 million the county received through the federal American Rescue Plan Act. ARPA money will also be used to pay $15,000 for eight concrete tables in the park.
Pigg said the next addition to Kimmswick Park will be a playground built near the pavilion. Where exactly the playground will be installed has not been decided, he said.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” Pigg said. “At this point in time, we think (the playground) will be next to it (the pavilion), but I’m going to have to work with the playground people to work it out. We’ll manage to make the changes as we see necessary.”
Kimmswick Park is open from dawn until dusk, according to the Jefferson County Parks and Recreation Department website.
County Executive Dennis Gannon said at the June 10 County Council meeting that he was impressed by how many visitors Kimmswick Park already receives.
“We’ve been working on the landing at Kimmswick for quite some time,” he said. “Since February of this year, there have been 13,045 vehicles down at the landing at Kimmswick, which just blows my mind that many people are going down at the riverfront. I found that to be very interesting.”