It won’t be ready for the summer, but barring a change the city of Vicksburg finally has a contractor in place to build a new splash pad in Catfish Row Art Park downtown.

In a special called meeting Friday, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved a $534,117 contract with Planet Recess from Baker, Louisiana, to design and build a new splash pad.

The board originally approved a bid by Planet Recess to build the splash pad in March, but the offer was rescinded after it was determined the company didn’t follow a state law, which requires out of state bidders to include a copy of their state’s out of state bid law as part of their packet.

This bid was the same one Planet Recess submitted in March when they were the lone bidder on the project, except for the inclusion of the required paperwork.

The board reopened bids in April and Planet Recess was on of two companies to bid on the project this time around. The other — Focus Construction LLC/Millennium Construction LLC — submitted a bid of $450,000. Although they had the low bid, it was reject at the recommendation of Landscape Services, the Tupelo-based landscape architecture firm hired for the project, because as a residential builder Focus can’t work on a project of more than 7,500 square feet and some of Millennium’s paperwork had expired.

The board had originally set a budget of $250,000 to replace the splash pad after it was forced to be demolished because a pipe had broken under the concrete and was pouring water into the road.

South Ward Alderman Alex Monsour, who oversees parks and recreation, said they have, “contingencies to make it work,” in reference to the project being over the planned budget.

The pad had previously been closed for almost a month last summer as repairs were made on the outdated pad, which had been in operation for 15 years.

The city had planned to have the new pad installed and running by this summer, but the delay caused by having to rebid the project moved the timeline back.

“I want to make it emphatically clear, the splash pad will not be ready for the summer,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said in April. “As mayor of this city, I’m letting the public know the splash pad will not be operating for the summer. I’m saying it in time so people can make the adjustment to it. It is one of the most useable places for recreation on the summer.”