Marquette Park renovation enters third phase

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GARY — The Marquette Park Lakefront East project will move into the third of four phases, after the Board of Public Works and Safety approved advertising for site improvement bids on the $28.4 million project.

The facelift of the crown jewel of Gary’s parks system is being paid for by the Regional Development Authority and, according to one city official, will be completed by year’s end.

“This is about infrastructure aspects of the project,” said city planning director Dwayne Williams. “The project is on schedule, and everything will be done by December 2012.”

The project has already rehabilitated the Father Marquette statue and oak savannah, and work continues on returning the 83-year-old Marquette Park Pavilion, a popular wedding and event site, to its original glory.

Bid three will cover curbs, street and sanitation improvements, lighting and other work along the streets that wind through the park.

The board also awarded a $38,367 contract to Five Alarm, a Wisconsin firm, for human extrication tools. The equipment is used to remove people trapped in wrecked vehicles.

The city’s health and human resources department won approval for a series of contracts for health professionals, including $19,700 in two contracts for Dr. Anthony Iwaugwu. The physician will work six hours a week for the contract, half the time on prenatal care and the rest in the maternal and child health clinic.

Now led by former chief of staff Arlene Colvin, the Community Development department landed board approval for three contracts.

Pamela Sanders will run the Continuum of Care, a homeless prevention and rapid rehousing program, for seven months at $31,200. Rural and Urban Consulting, run by Diana Sandlin, who last week was awarded a consulting contract with the health department, will earn up to $5,000 for grant writing services for Community Development, as will the B. Scott Henry Consulting Group, also for grant writing.

City Controller Celita Green, one of three officials on the board of works, joined the others in signing a contract for financial consultant Cender and Cender for $8,000 worth of work for the month of January.

Finally, there will be a road closure at 37th and Broadway Feb. 9 and Feb. 10 to allow Indiana-American Water to replace two 16-inch valves in the alleyway running north and south at the intersection.