I am very please with all the projects we have going on and I have no issues to report. The general contractors or subs involved have performed excellently. The foresight the general contract had for Kuentz is doing a great job and is on schedule.”

RCSCW Facilities Maintenance Manager Karl Wilhelm

By Jennifer Jimenez
Twitter: @SCW_Independent

Recreation Centers of Sun City West spent the summer doing plenty of capital and maintenance projects.

From resurfacing tennis courts to laying carpet, RCSCW workers were busy despite many facilities being shuttered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

RCSCW Projects Manager Russ Boston explained the difference between capital and maintenance projects during the Properties Committee’s first meeting of the fiscal year Sept. 3.

“Anything more than $5,000, anything lasting more than five years, like all of the parking lots, reoccurring things like roofs and things of that nature, all fall under capital project. Reoccurring maintenance includes door repairs, wood floors and things like that,” he explained.

RCSCW Facilities Maintenance Manager Karl Wilhelm provided an update on the completed projects, carryover and upcoming project schedules:

May 27 - R.H. Johnson tennis ramp deck surface renovation.

May 27 - ARC building exhaust installation.

June 30 - Directional sign installation.

July 7 - Sports Pavilion north entrance.

July 23 - Kuentz Swim and Fitness spa remodel.

July 31 - Memos gas installation.

Aug. 4 - Art room partition replacement.

Aug. 19 - Palm Ridge lobby/hallway carpet replacement.

Aug. 20 - Beardsley Arts and Craft flat roof restoration.

Aug. 21 - Palm Ridge activities center hard wood floors.

Aug. 27 - Photography club flooring replacement.

According to RCSCW General Services Officer Katy O’Grady the approximate cost for these projects was approximately $482,000.

Mr. Wilhelm also updated the committee on the golf course projects.

“The Grandview Crooked Putter flooring was replaced, along with the Echo Mesa, Trail Ridge, Deer Valley and Grandview front and back nine restroom roof restoration on May 22,” he said. “Just recently Pebblebrook driving range electrical was completed on Aug. 26.”

The large dog park renovation has a tentative schedule date of Oct. 31 and Mr. Wilhelm said it has approximately five weeks of construction, irrigation installation and planting installation left on the schedule and is comfortable with that date.

“Even with weather permitting, the reason why the project is not going to open until Nov. 1 or 2 is due to the fact that Todd Patty has to follow behind me after with sod installation and has to do overseeding for fall grass. The project will be done a few weeks prior to Nov. 1, but Todd has to overseed,” Mr. Wilhelm said.

Capital update

After completing master projects at Kuentz Recreation Center, 14401 R.H. Johnson Blvd., in September, Mr. Wilhelm said the work will move on to the pool patio deck to bring the surrounding projects to completion, weather permitting, around Sept. 28 and last approximately two weeks.

“The main reason is I can’t have the dusty construction work surrounding the project affect installation of the new surface,” he explained. “Kuentz parking lot and walking track, asphalt seal and stripe will begin after Oct. 3, weather permitting, and last approximately one week after those two projects. I will be officially completed with fiscal year 2019-20 and 2020-21 Kunetz projects.”

Pebblebrook Golf Course, 18836 N. 128th Ave., parking lot renovation will run Sept. 11-21. Beardsley Recreation Center, 12755 W. Beardsley Road, parking lot is scheduled for Sept. 14-18 and Grandview Golf Course pro shop, 14260 W. Meeker Blvd., parking lot is scheduled for Sept. 24-25. The R.H. Johnson Library, 13801 W. Meeker Blvd., flat roof restoration has a tentative start date in October, but will be determined based on the vendor and good weather.

“I am very please with all the projects we have going on and I have no issues to report. The general contractors or subs involved have performed excellently. The foresight the general contract had for Kuentz is doing a great job and is on schedule,” Mr. Wilhelm mentioned.

The last two weeks of the project feature a “punch list” make sure everything is done to scope of work, he explained.

“I also discussed with the weaver clubs and quilters presidents who meet with me regularly about their future rooms and have done electrical walks to make sure they are placed in the right location and any special requests they had that I met their scope of work and I informed them basically the first couple of weeks of October would be move-in time, and based on rec center staff and rooms being available with COVID,” Mr. Wilhelm said.

Additionally, Mr. Boston addressed a question by committee member Bob Hartley.

“With the sprinkler at the sports pavilion, is this something your people are making recommendations on?” he asked.

Some are requests and some are from the association officials, Mr. Boston explained.

“With the sprinkler heads we had one over the bowling lanes that gave way and four have done so since I have been here. Our site is 45 years old and has a life of 50, so we wanted to get the heads up and replace with the new style that won’t have these failures,” Mr. Boston said.

Metal shop

The plan moving forward, according to Mr. Wilhelm, is to continue diligent work on the metal shop project.

“July 1 we began to take a full evaluation on 100% of equipment and electrical requirements and space utilization all the equipment takes up,” Mr. Boston said. “I put that into a document and sent to the architect to provide to electrical engineers and final conversations about what size this building needed to be.”

Last year he was clear the project started at 2,800 square feet but Mr. Boston was able to work with the architect to get it down to 2,600.

“We have also had our first Maricopa County pre-permit application meeting two weeks ago and that was via web conference with all leaders to take a look at our plan and before we draw final plans for review they give us all the pointers to make sure we aren’t missing anything,” Mr. Boston said.

According to Mr. Wilhelm, the plan is well-accepted and the only complication is the metal shop is currently on two building parcels. The association is working to get the site surveyed and reclassified into one parcel. Additionally, new site plans are in the works and the next step is to make it official and turn the document in to the county.

The next Properties Committee meeting is set for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1.

Reporter Jennifer Jimenez can be reached at jjimenez@newszap.com or follow her on Twitter @SCW_Independent.

Jennifer Jimenez
Reporter | Sun City West
@SCW_Independent

jjimenez@iniusa.org

I am passionate about sports and community writing and shining the light on positivity, while delivering the facts. I have been with the Independent team for five months, but in the game for 15 years. I am a proud Grand Canyon University alumni. Born and raised in Peoria, I also am blessed to have a street named after me called Jennifer Rose Court.