No Bid Town Park Project Over Budget and Unfinished

The Park at Snyder’s Lake needed a lot of work. The main building was old and in disrepair. For years, residents have complained about its lack of handicapped accessibility. So, it was welcome news when the town board decided in 2021 to use a substantial amount of the town’s allotment of the Federal American Rescue Plan money towards park improvements. The American Rescue Plan or ARPA was passed by the Democratic Congress (with not one Republican vote) to provide direct relief to the American people during the COVID 19 pandemic. North Greenbush received approximately $1.25 million in ARPA funds and decided to use about 45% or $565,000 on improvements to the Snyder’s Lake park.  That’s a lot of money and we would hope that town officials would not waste the money.  Most people know public projects are bid out to get the best price for taxpayers. That is not what happened here in North Greenbush.  A Freedom of Information Law request  showed  that the contract for work at the park was not publicly advertised bid out. No budget for the work was set. The town hired some contractors based on the recommendations of others. That system works for small projects like replacing a bathroom stall but is not appropriate for a public project of more than half a million dollars.  This no budget no bid project was dragging along into the spring of 2023 with little progress when the Republican dominated town board voted in May 2023 to allocate nearly all the town’s Greenspace funds ($200,000) towards the Snyder’s Lake project budget.  Former town councilmember and current town board candidate Mary Frances Sabo questioned the Supervisor about the need for the additional funds since so little progress had been made on the project. At that May meeting, the supervisor explained that an increase in the cost of materials necessitated the additional funds. Ms. Sabo then pressed the Supervisor as to who the contractor was and how much in total was allocated for the project. He was unable to respond.  Can you imagine a major renovation project in your own home such as a new kitchen without knowing the budget or how much everything was going to cost?  Yet that’s what is going on in North Greenbush.  A visit to Snyder’s Lake at the end of the season in August showed that little progress had been made on the building as it was still fenced in and covered with a tarp. And when questioned at the August board meeting, the supervisor stated that the project was “under budget”.  The handling of this project and the federal and town funds is a glaring example of how poorly the town is being run by this board and how little attention is paid to your tax dollars.