By Michael Theis

Chronicle staff

Some Shepherdstown’s public playgrounds will be receiving a $13,000 facelift to bring the equipment into compliance with the American’s with Disabilities Act.

The Shepherdstown Town Council unanimously approved a recommendation by the Parks and Recreation Committee to award a contract to Martinsburg based Taylor Sports and Recreation, which will overhaul Cullison Park on Rocky Street, as well as Bane Harris Park on W. High Street.

TSR is the only company which submitted a bid on the project. Public Works Director Frank Welch, in an interview on Wednesday, said that the town has worked with TSR in the past. TSR is one of the only companies in the area which are listed as playground equipment suppliers, the other being an Amish company which specializes in domestic wooden playground equipment. Other companies are located in Frederick, Md. and Emmittsburg, Md., but Welch was interested in working with a more local company.

TSR’s bid to overhaul the two parks estimated the total cost to be $13,000 split almost evenly between Cullison Park on Rocky Street and Bane Harris Park on West High Street.

The Cullison Park overhaul will run $7,000 and will include an expansion of the “fall area” around the swingsets, installing “engineered wood chips”, installing borders around the play area, and the repositioning of some equipment.

The Bane Harris Park overhaul will run $6,800. TSR will do a cutout of the borders and extend the asphalt pathway to make the playground handicap accessible. Citing age, and deterioration, the TSR bid also calls for the swings to be removed and replaced with a T-post swing with one belt seat and one toddler seat.

Public Works purchases mini-excavcator

The Town Council also approved a $34,000 purchase of a Case CX31B mini excavator and a trailer to haul it on. Resembling a toy-steam shovel for grown-ups, Welch Says that the small machine can do digging in delicate areas which would otherwise have to be done by hand. According to the construction equipment database RitchieSpecs, the CX31B sports a Yanmar four-cylinder diesel engine pumping out 28 horsepower producing over 72 foot-pounds of torque. No word yet on its top speed.