Park Enhancements Ahead of Schedule

Due to the recent bought of favorable weather, the Angle Lake park enhancements which include the hillside regrade, the addition of two new picnic shelters and installation of a spray park are now reported to be progressing extremely well. So well, that the project may complete ahead of schedule and significantly under budget.  

The overall project costs are calculating out to be considerably lower than the original estimate, thus creating a substantial excess of unspent capital in reserve! According to city officials closest to the project, there is now absolutely no reason of concern for project cost overruns – in fact the issue now is more about what to do with the remaining unspent funds.  

One aspect of rating a project success is in regard to budget.  If a project comes within a 5% variance, plus or minus, it is deemed successful. Currently all quality metrics for the project are indicating well above the established benchmarks except for the area of budget where a significant surplus exists due to the early  completion of several major construction milestones.

In attempt to address the budget imbalance, officials are currently considering the addition of an unplanned feature to be added to the project that will bring the total costs back within a desired 5% variance. The proposed amendment to the project is to build an underwater observation room just east of the swimming pier. The declared reasoning is this would provide an excellent opportunity for any non-swimmers to discover the experience of being underwater, similar to what a skilled swimmer enjoys, however to do so in a safe and dry environment. “This is expected to provide the non-swimming population of our city an equal opportunity to enjoying our natural lake resources, the same opportunity our swimming population enjoys today” the official is quoted as having said.

When questioned about the source of the idea, the official indicated that the idea for the additional scope was based on the concept of the water spray facility being installed in the upper portion of the park. “The spray park offers our non-swimming population the opportunity of getting wet in a safe and secure environment – the underwater observation room will provide an opportunity for everyone to enjoy the waters of the lake without getting wet! It’s a perfect Yin/Yang combination!”  

If implemented, the platform will be open to the public throughout the week and will also be available for group and individual to rent for private events, much in the same way that our picnic shelters may be reserved for private affairs. This will generate additional revenue for the Parks and Recreation Department bottom line and provide yet another highly admired facet to the jewel of the City – Angle Lake Park. 

Discussions are ongoing with a decision on this new portion of the project expected to be reached on Monday, April 1st. Please contact the City of SeaTac at (277) 453-6657 for more information; to offer comments and/or opinions on this project.

(Postscript:  This is an April Fools Joke)