County forestry committee looks at Almon Park improvements

The forestry department had brought several Capital Improvement Projects (CIPs) to the forestry, recreation and land committee for approval at the August meeting, but there were two for which they wanted to have a more solid idea of the costs involved. Those came back to the Sept. 9 committee meeting and were both regarding work at Almon Park.

The first project was to repair or replace the retaining wall near the beach. According to county forestry director Jill Nemec, fixing that wall came in in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. It was obvious, she said, that this was not going to be an option for the department to undertake. However, Oneida County forester Jake Truitt, she said, met with the landscaper, who said the recommended course of action would be ripping out the wall completely and grading the slope. Additionally, part of that slope would be seeded with grass down to where the sand started at the beach. 

Nemec said she felt that could be done without a CIP, and it could even be done in stages. Working with the highway department or another partner, she said, one half at a time could be done.

“If you rip it out, you’re going to have to cordon it off so when you reseed it, people aren’t running around in there,” she said. “So it probably isn’t something you can do all at one time. She said beginning the project could be attempted yet this fall, but she was uncertain the seeding would take before winter set in.

Forestry office administrator Tanya Tischendorf said there was $40,000 set aside for the CIP, with $20,000 budgeted for this year to complete work on the retaining wall. She said the forestry department could work with the highway department to tear out part, or all, of the wall, and use those budgeted funds to do that portion of the work.

In 2026, she said, there was already $10,000 budgeted for regular maintenance and repair, which she said she might like to see that increased to $20,000. This would mean asking for $25,000 from the general fund rather than $15,000. That, Tischendorf said, would still leave money in the appropriations account and eliminate the CIP.

The committee approved the department’s plan to remove the wall, likely in stages, grade the slope and seed grass along the slope. They increase in the budget and elimination of the CIP was included in that approval.

The second CIP involving Almon Park is one on which Nemec had been working quite diligently, but had been having difficulty getting a contractor to show up to give the county an estimate. However, Oneida Roofing, she said, did come out to look at the building, but inspected the wrong building. Nemec sent photos of the sky lights that would need to be repaired and was waiting to hear back.

“This $50,000 is still a shot in the dark,” she said of the estimate she felt would cover the costs of removing those sky lights and putting in some sort of solar LED lights in that building. She recommended leaving the CIP in as it was, and said she hoped to provide a better estimate of the costs at the October meeting.

The next meeting of the Oneida County forestry, recreation and land meeting will be at 8 a.m. on Oct. 14 at the Oneida County courthouse.

Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].