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Staff Report
City Council
Item No. 1.B
Meeting Date: April 5, 2023
From: Kevin Biersack, Deputy Finance Director
Title: Town Square Fountain of Life and Soft Surface
City Council
RECOMMENDATION:
Review the use and status of the Fountain of Life art and the surrounding soft surface.
BACKGROUND:
The development of the “Fountain of Life” was meant to be something truly special – a monument symbolizing the ambition of an entire community as well as a fun gathering place for citizens of Cathedral City. The “Fountain of Life” features a central structure of three highly decorated stone bowls, at different heights, each level with various jets and cascades, set atop columns rising into the desert sky. Water tumbles, sprays and cascades from these bowls and other jets on the center structure, spilling onto a soft surface surrounding the fountain. All around this vertical structure are sculpted animal figures – a whimsical counterbalance lending a light touch to the composition and opens the whole setting to children at play.
In 1998, Casa de Cantera in Oxford, CA was hired to provide the carved stone elements and the General Contractor was Glen Dobbs of Fountain & Landscape Enhancements in Bakersfield, CA. The project was designed by Jennifer Johnson with Cock-a-Doodle- Doo of Palm Springs, CA. Johnson worked with architect Roe Young, also of Palm Springs.
Initially, a substructure was created and installed to support the massive water shape. A template was used to get the positions of plumbing and supporting columns to within tolerances for the sub-base. Once the sub-base was completed, metal columns were then installed to support the fountain’s towers and another layer of concrete was poured to create the main pad. Surrounding this structure are various animals, including a ram, turtle, fish, iguana, rooster and rabbit, all partially decorated in tile and many including water jets.
The stonework, the central structure and the animal structures, were carved of granite mined in Guadalajara, Mexico. The specific granite used is known as a “light pinion”- not rare, but not commonly quarried and carved. These pieces were quarried in the mountains near Guadalajara over a three-week period. The center element took 59
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custom-carved pieces, taking more than five months to complete in Guadalajara. This was done through local sculptors and craftspeople, focused on this project for the duration.
Once the fountain was set, all the pieces were clearly marked to simplify the reassembly. The individual pieces were transported to Cathedral City and were put together like a layered cake, one level at a time. At the same time, a central structure was built for the perimeter drain system to prepare the area to receive the soft surface.
As assembled, the center element weighs in at nearly 100 tons, which naturally called for a significant foundation. A Structural Engineer from Oxnard, CA, designed a 12-by- 14-foot pad, 4 feet thick. The pad was created in two pours to assure proper placement of the conduits, which are routed through large iron standpipes ranging in diameter from 6 to 14 inches.
The center fountain structure was built on three levels. The first row was laid on the pad around the standpipe. Slots were cut into the bottom of the base stones. Loops of rebar were then cemented in place using a special epoxy/mortar mixture. Holes were cut in the tops and sides of the stones for more rebar. Stubs for the loops were then used to stitch the second and third levels of stone to each other.
On the first two levels, a large void was left in the center of the stones. After the pieces were put together, this was filled with concrete, flush to the top. Once the center structure was complete, columns for the bowls were added and lowered over each standpipe. Separately, plumbing runs were set up to the animal’s supporting foundations and an encircling gutter system with a 60-foot diameter to allow for flow and drainage of the water system.
To the east of the fountain is the subterranean equipment vault with two 10-horsepower pumps driving the water features. The control panels and plumbing configurations program 35 different water elements with a variety of nozzles and spray effects in a system holding approximately 10,000 gallons of water drawn from a subgrade surge tank.
To compensate for the rapid evaporation in the desert, an auto-fill system was created. .
The project was started in early 1998 and was completed by spring of 2000. Due to the amount of water, chemicals for sanitation and heat in the desert, the major repairs over the past 20+ years have focused on the soft surfacing replacement, averaging every 2-3 years. More than six years ago, one of the bowls on top of the fountain was replaced.
Aside from these repairs, general maintenance has been annual cleaning, pump & electrical repairs, and surge tank replacement.
DISCUSSION:
The fountain has not been operational for the past six months. There are areas of soft surface deterioration, safety concerns, slip and fall issues, and potential structure issues – with varying degrees of risk associated with operating the fountain as an interactive, climbable water feature. Staff has had the opportunity to inspect the fountain and soft surface. After internal inspection of the fountain and soft surface, staff reached out for a third-party review conducted by David Peterson of Watershapes Consulting, a structural Cathedral City Page 3 of 4 Printed on 3/30/2023
engineering firm, and Eric Dobbs, the original general contractor’s brother. A report was filed with the City addressing various issues in the attached document. The issues identified can be categorized into these three groups with rough order of magnitude financial impacts: (1) mechanical, electrical and plumbing ($100K), (2) fencing ($75K) and (3) stone and decking ($75K). Within Staff capabilities, e.g., electrical, we plan to address any mechanical, electrical and plumbing issues in the near term with internal resources.
In addition, the soft surface’s lifespan is generally every two to three years depending on a variety of factors. The combination of heat, water and the potential hydrogen (pH) factor of the chlorination for health and safety purposes along with the increased use makes it extremely challenging to maintain the soft surface a longer period.
Due to potential structural issues, deterioration and damage to the soft surface and the associated risk with it being an interactive, climbable feature, staff is recommending the Fountain of Life be dedicated to being a central art piece in our downtown. With City Council concurrence, staff plans to engage a third-party consultant to create a conceptual design (estimated at a cost of $15,000) for the Fountain’s proposed use to include these considerations:
•Fencing (potentially made of recyclable materials) to protect and safeguard the art.
•Concrete and/or soft surface options inside and outside fencing •Water flow and drain
In the upcoming Parks Improvement Project (PIP) Plan, staff has proposed additional and improved water features in various parks throughout the City:
•Add a water feature to the grounds of:
oTown Square – but not within the Fountain of Life core (FY 2023/2024) oCentury Park (FY 2024/2025)
•Improve the water feature at:
oOcotillo Park (FY 2025/2026)
oPanorama Park (FY 2026/2027)
These additional water features and upgrades to existing water features at our City parks are being proposed to mitigate the potential future use of our Town Square Fountain as a visual only water feature.
With introducing these additional upgrades and new installations to include Spray grounds (Splashpad) with re-circulated water, Staff needs to take into consideration these “special purpose pools” are monitored under State of California Conference of Directors of Environmental Health (CCDEH) and Riverside County Department of Environmental Health guidelines and protocols. These Spray grounds (water features) encourage public interaction a n d are constructed and designed so there is no accumulation (ponding of water) on the surface of the ground. With water being stored in an underground reservoir, a separate booster pump system is used to introduce treated water to the spray ground through various features (i.e., jet nozzles, tumble buckets, water cannons, etc.). After the water hits the ground, it drains back Cathedral City Page 4 of 4 Printed on 3/30/2023
to the reservoir. A re-circulation system draws water from the reservoir where it is filtered, disinfected, and returned to the reservoir. Spray Grounds should be constructed with available potable water source, underground water storage tanks, adequate pumping system to maintain required turnover rates, filtration system, automatic water level controller, automated chemical injection controllers and ultraviolet light disinfection units to maintain required chemical/disinfection balance and surfacing that is easily cleaned and maintained.
FISCAL IMPACT:
For information, discussion and Council direction.
It is noteworthy that as part of the Facilities Master Plan, the City’s Town Square will be one of 14 facilities to be evaluated as part of the Facilities Condition Assessment. In the upcoming biennial budget, staff has included $150K to address potential issues with the Fountain of Life in the first budget year.
ATTACHMENTS:
Watershape Consulting Fountain of Life Assessment 03.15.2023 CCDEH_Guidelines
Riverside County DEH 46-06-DES-Pool-Spa-Maintenance