Beautiful benches, big savings
The seating at Davis Park looks better than ever, thanks to the Parks Department’s hard work and creativity.
BY GRACE FAIRCHILD
On a stroll through Davis Park this spring, you may notice that a few benches have gotten a makeover. Their beauty secret? Teak oil…and more than $16k in savings for Scarsdale taxpayers.
The Village Parks Department has seen natural wear and weather exposure cause wooden benches across Scarsdale to deteriorate. In the past decade, the Parks Department has started using recycled plastic for new benches because they last much longer than natural wood. But Department Superintendent Brian Gray says the older wooden benches in Village parks have not fared as well against the slow march of time: “They get lichen on them, moss…they just get weathered throughout 20 to 30 years in the environment.” Benches in Davis Park, De Lima Park, Chase Park and other spaces needed some TLC.
Several benches have been donated or dedicated in memorial of loved ones, and the Parks Department recognizes that they serve as meaningful landmarks for our shared community spaces. So while the wear and tear on park benches may seem like a routine challenge, the maintenance often requires some creative problem solving. Cleaning the benches would prove difficult since the team avoids scrubbing public facilities with strong chemical treatments, and power washing the benches would risk further wood decay. The team then returned to the manufacturer who originally produced the benches, and they returned with the eye-popping $17k estimate. “It was an eye-opener for all of us,” Gray notes.
Rather than accept this as the cost of doing business, the Parks Department team started a winter project. “The way I look at it… I could do this job for about 1,200 bucks. I could do it another 10 times, and still be ahead of the game,” reasoned Gray. He knew his staff could complete the work in-house for a fraction of the cost. Over just a month this winter, the team purchased new pressure-treated pine and began cutting, milling and sanding. With a teak oil finish, the department is hoping this wood will see the seats of many Scarsdale residents for years to come. Bench upgrades began in Davis Park this spring, and De Lima Park could be next on the list, along with more parks later this year.
You may not think much of a quiet stroll through a Village park, but the updates to the Davis Park benches remind us that it takes work and money to maintain such vital public spaces. Taxpayers in Scarsdale will certainly appreciate the Parks Department team’s savvy use of Village resources. But even above cost-savings, Superintendent Gray emphasized the pride his staff take in their hard work, knowing it will serve the community. “We’re just doing our job… and we’ll keep chugging away.”