Shelter at Community Park could be rebuilt from scratch

The Village of Belgium is looking to replace the shelter at Community Park.

The Parks and Recreation Committee last week discussed the shelter’s status and the next steps in replacing it.

Nearly all the posts that support the shelter are rotting from the bottom, committee chairman Don Gotcher said.

It would be cheaper, he said, to tear down the entire building and start over.

Public Works Director Dan Birenbaum suggested keeping a portion of the building for bathrooms because utilities are connected to it.

Birenbaum said he looked into lifting up the structure and just replace the posts, but that isn’t feasible. The posts, he said, are tied into the concrete and will not pull out. New holes would have to be drilled.

“We would be spending bad money,” he said. “The building served its purpose. It was built in ’83.”

With a new design, Birenbaum said, the concession stand could be expanded and the shelter extended farther east.

The structure he envisions would be similar to the one at Heritage Park but attached to the original building.

It would entail hiring an architect to draw up plans for the new building.

“If we hire an architect, they’re not cheap,” Birenbaum said.

The Belgium Lions Club expressed  interest in helping fund the project a couple of years ago.

Committee member Clem Gottsacker said he thinks one of the Lions is an architect who may be able to help.

Unless the Lions make a significant donation, Village Treasurer Vickie Boehnlein said, the project would have to be put out for public bid.

“All we can do is have them in and give them an ask and see what happens,” Gotcher said of the Lions.

Gottsacker said the timing might not be right at the moment.

“Everybody is going through trying times right now with the Covid ... almost no fundraisers,” he said.

But Gotcher said, “It’s not like we’re building it this year.”

Birenbaum said he plans to contact local carpenter Don Mueller, who built the shelter in Heritage Park, to get a cost estimate before the village contacts the Lions.

The committee didn’t take action on the issue.