Palm Coast government is turning to a trusted contractor, Daytona Beach-based Saboungi Construction–fresh from its ramped up transformation of Waterfront Park–to repair the desolate splash pad at Holland Park, a two-year-old blight on the city’s prized park system and an eyesore at the flagship park almost since it opened in May 2021.
The city had no choice. Saboungi Construction was the only bidder. Should the Palm Coast City Council approve the award at its meeting this evening, the company will be paid $2.6 million, with an additional $305,000 for contingencies. The city paid Martin Aquatic Design & Engineering $100,000 to redesign the project, bringing the total cost to $3 million.
The original cost of the splash pad was over $5 million, and never had the full support of the council. The splash pad’s unhappy history suggests that tonight’s vote is not a guarantee, as some council members could be leery of being associated with what so far has looked like a boondoggle even as the city battles those it blames for it in court.
The reconstruction costs will be added to the $1.4 million in losses and legal fees the city had already accumulated from the failed splash pad as of last November (that figure has grown significantly since, but the city didn’t yet have an updated number). The city hopes to recoup all those dollars if it prevails in the lawsuit it filed against several contractors involved in the original design and construction of the splash pad before it opened. It is an extremely complex lawsuit that hinges on technical fine points and spheres of responsibility between innumerable contractors. Palm Coast initially sued four defendants. That list has grown to 12.
The case is in the thick of discovery at the moment as parties depose each other and posture with the usual duels of interrogations and other “productions” that are routine if still contentious, time-consuming and costly parts of civil trials. Should it go that far, the case would result in a lengthy trial and an uncertain outcome, especially regarding the damages the city hopes to recoup: some, if not most, of the city council members serving now will not see the conclusion of that case before their terms end.
More certain, but not definite–because nothing with this splash pad has ever been definite–is the current projected end of reconstruction: July 2024.
The splash pad today is unrecognizable from the way it looked, its oceanic colors and sculpted animals doused under water and the patter of children’s feet, when it opened more than two years ago. It is now an enclosed wreck, the site of many tests, its pad surface removed a long time ago for analysis, leaving bare a grim gray concrete expanse . The contractor will remove te entirety of that surface, including 11 miles of rebar, rebuild 23 miles of underground piping, and reapply a new pad. It’s usually a contractor specialty(a separate contractor was hired to do the job the first time), and it’s not clear if Saboungi has experience in that particular aspect of splash pad construction. The fact that Saboungi was the only bidder may be a reflection of companies’ reluctance to risk getting mired in a legally fraught zone.
But Saboungi, his brother Hassan and their family business have a long history in Palm Coast, and a warm relationship with the city, as Mahmoud Saboungi described it when he spoke to the ribbon-cutting crowd at Waterfront Park two months ago.
“In the 70s I had a friend who was a vice president of sales for ITT and he invited me to come here and see this wonderful opportunity,” he said of Palm Coast at the time. He visited. “And I thought, this guy’s crazy. There was was 2,000 people living in their area, and the area was called I think a district, the Palm Coast District.” He visited again 10 years later and saw the difference, and before long he thought his friend at ITT may not have been so crazy after all.
He started Saboungi Construction in 1986, landing the company’s first project in town–the flag-fluttered welcome to Palm Coast sign at Old Kings Road and Palm Coast Parkway. Then he built the Post Office, with some doubts: “Why are they building the post office in no man’s land?” he asked himself, the Post Office on Pine Cone Drive at the time seeming like an outpost in the wilderness. “And I’m going, something is wrong with these people.”
Ten years later, Saboungi Construction was adding to its Palm Coast portfolio: Indian Trails Sports Complex, Heroes Memorial Park, Ralph carter Park, Linear Park, Long Creek Preserve, “and a lot of private projects.” The company was not as lucky with the recent, $22.6 million contract for an addition at Matanzas High School. Even though Saboungi was the low bidder, by several million dollars, the district awarded the contract to a different company.
In fact, this evening Saboungi is in line for two contracts. In addition to the Splash Pad, it is also slated to be awarded a $1 million contract, part of the $1.2 million Long Creek nature Preserve construction of its Phase 2 amenities, including a nature center, walking trail, kiosks, 27 markers, a boardwalk and an overlook.
Greg says
Corrupt corrupt!!!! Same as sellin our land and woodlands to developers!!
TR says
So what makes this contractor trustworthy? Just because they were the only company to bid the job? That’s really not a qualification I would look at. Maybe the reason no other company bidded the job is because they all realize that it’s a waste of money to try and fix someone else’s mess without starting over. But knowing how things go in this city it will cost 5 mil by the time all is said and done. So it just more wasted money on trying to fix something that the city doesn’t need.
James says
A simple walking bridge near Wadsworth over budget, over dead line, but they got another contract with the city? Someone’s pockets are getting filled. Wasting are tax dollars and not supervising the work or the quality! Mean while are streets are in need of repair and I’m getting a little sick of the fraud, waste and abuse in such a small town.
Dennis C Rathsam says
The only bidder????? Some one you can trust????? Here we go again my fellow voters. Why does P/C do everything ass backwards? Ill bet money it wont be done on time, or for the 3 million. We live in a difunctional city, any one with with a 1/2 a brain can see it! Yet the mayor & his band of Merrymen think thier the greatest thing since sliced bread!Enough lies, Enough bullshit! When will you morons put the people of P/C first?????
raw says
I have an easy fix. The splash pad (using that term loosely) is junk. What do you do with junk? Throw it away. It’s junk folks!
Skibum says
Can’t people give this contractor and the city a break? The contractor may have been the only company to bid on the job, but in my experience with contractors and rebuilds, it is very common for contractors to NOT want to come in after another has messed up a construction job, and try to fix it. It is so much easier for a contractor to start from scratch and do the job right, but that is not an option when you have a company screw up a job, so let’s move forward, crossing our fingers and wishing them success in repairing the horrible job that the previous contractor did on the splash pad. Remember that this contractor is not an unknown entity, and that the company has done very good work on several previous projects for the city already AND has a good relationship with the city, so that also is a plus. The splash pad desperately needs to be fixed, and despite all of the sourpusses out there and negative comments about fixing it, the splash pad was voted on, millions in taxpayer dollars were spent on building it, and it was a very popular feature for families at Holland Park. If this work can bring it back for the enjoyment of the community’s kids, I say GET IT DONE!
jeffery c. seib says
Well, I think we all hope this contractor knows which way is up. But all the folks involved in the original design, contract and construction perhaps need some remedial training in things such as an iron-clad guarantee that the system will function as designed for a period of time, with penalties and legal liability. The people of Palm Coast need top rate legal, engineering, and construction advisors. Maybe this is one reason the developer’s agent (lawyer) seem to get their way with all the inappropriate projects shoved down our throats.
Jan says
I hope they fix it and it’s a grand success. Went there once (when it was operational) with two of my grandchildren and they absolutely loved it. Hopefully, it can be repaired and used for years to come.
TR says
You are correct, we (the tax payers) paid a lot of money for the splash pad. Unfortunately our council at the time apparently didn’t do their job to find the right company to built right the first time. So why should us (the tax payers) pay again to have it fixed. It didn’t benefit as many families as you think being it was only open for two weeks. Not to mention it’s like anything else in this city (or any other) when something is new people will try it out making it look like a great success. But when the novelty wears off it will be nothing. Just because it has the Holland attached to the part doesn’t mean the city has to try and turn it into an amusement park. Parents will (and mark my word) get tired of taking their little bundle of joys to the park every day or even twice a week when schools are not in session. Also if you have had so much experience with contractors, then you know that no matter what the bid for the job came in on is never the actual total of the job. A contractor will ALWAYS fine an excuse after the job is started why it will cost a lot more then the original bid. This repair will cost 5mil or more when it’s done. Bottom line it’s a waste of money, and always was. If the kids want to get wet during the summer, take them to the beach we are only like 7 miles away.
TR says
I agree 100%
Kate S. says
Cause this is what we should be spending our money on..
Skibum says
You sound like you were dead set against building it from the beginning and won’t like it no matter what. Fine, you don’t have to like it, but the fact is that the city decided it would be something nice and they approved it and had it built. It is certainly regrettable that the contractor, as well as sub-contractors I suppose, flubbed the job up so bad it had to be closed down, but I went by there a number of times after it opened and it was wildly popular. It will continue to be wildly popular if repaired correctly for the enjoyment of the families and especially kids to play in. I have lived in other cities that had similar splash pad areas in parks, and they have been there operating for the enjoyment of kids for years and years, so there is no reason why the one in Holland Park cannot be successfully operated for years to come – IF built and maintained properly. And I guarantee that if that happens, probably you and others will still be complaining about it until the end of days because you just cannot bring yourselves to let others have some joy in their lives for whatever reason. So sad.
Experienced says
Do they have a history of installing splash pads??? They are a contractor so they are going to sub things out… installing a splash pad is not easy… getting the splash pad equipment is literally the easiest part… if installed incorrectly… bad plumbing… surfacing… we’ll be in the exact same
Boat agin
TR says
Like I said it was something new so people will try it out. But like everything else the newness wears off and then just a hand full of people use it. Hey you have the right to agree to allow the council to waste our tax dollars that will only benefit a small amount of people once the newness wears off. But so you know, I don’t like when the city council wastes my hard earned tax money on something that not everyone will use. I’ll bet the cities you use to live in with a water park wasn’t close to the beach which is free to use. So I guess we will agree to disagree.
Flatsflyer says
What happened with the cities law suit against the original contractor, design firm, bonding agency and others. If the city couldn’t enforce the original project there is little or no hope for th future.
FlaglerLive says
The lawsuit is ongoing.
Land of no turn signals says says
That park is a money pit whose fate is decided by Jackass’s.
Skibum says
You have every right to your opinion, and yes, we will have to agree to disagree. I just wonder about something, however, since you mentioned how close we are to the ocean, and intimated that it would be much better for parents to let the splash pad age (young) children to frolic in the ocean water at the beach instead. Well, the answer is simple… letting kids play in the ocean, even close to shore, is so much more dangerous than having a city owned and operated splash pad for the kiddies to get wet and play in. No sharks, no rip currents, no drowning incidents, no jellyfish stings, etc. etc. The risks are exponentially higher at the beach than at the splash pad, and that is but one of the reasons why this type of amenity was prioritized for the citizens of Palm Coast. And it is one of the best uses of our tax dollars, although many I guess would like nothing other than no parks or recreation areas and only use tax dollars to subsidize property taxes and utility costs so it is less expensive for octogenarians without any regard for the families and kids who live here. It is the city’s responsibility to think of everyone, not just older adults, when deciding how and where to spend the city’s money, and I will continue to believe they made the right call, if not the right contractor bid, to put in all of the nice features at Holland Park.
James says
Hopefully this contractor gets it right, putting an end to all the divisiveness this project has brought.
Just my opinion.
S L says
I know the original contractor. He is very meticulous! I have known him for 53 years. I have seen his other work in the area between Port Orange and Palm Coast and I can tell you I have also seen children at these parks who do not care if the parks are are treated with great care, as long as the children are out of the parent’s way. Mom’s and dad’s are partially to blame. They allow the children to use sand shovels to rip the splash pad’s flooring to pieces. Or they allow them to run through the splash pads with cleats on because it’s the only shoes the children have with them after playing T-ball, little league or whatever they were playing before their parents took them to the splash pads. these are the same parents that will complain. Maybe parents need to be more responsible. There should be cameras watching what is going on at the parks.