Kansas City fountain that had a $1.2M renovation damaged week before Fountain Day
Less than a week before Kansas City’s 2019 Fountain Day celebration on April 16, a wall of one of the city’s newly renovated fountains has been damaged.
The accident at the Delbert J. Haff Circle Fountain, located at Meyer Boulevard and Swope Parkway, took out a small section of wall in front of the fountain.
Officers were sent to the scene at about 5:42 p.m. Thursday. Police say a work truck and a black sedan were involved in the incident.
A witness told police that while he was working in the area, he saw the sedan run off the road and onto the concrete that made up part of the fountain. The witness said the sedan also hit the left-rear side of a parked work truck.
Officers arrested Stanford Wheeler, 36, and charged him with multiple traffic offenses associated with the accident. Police believe he may have been impaired.
The fountain’s renovations cost about $1.2 million and were covered by GOkc Bonds and donations to the City of Fountains Foundation, according to Kansas City Parks and Recreation.
Improvements included a new concrete basin, new color LED lighting, the installation of new fountain equipment and a new vault to house that equipment, replacing the concrete walkway around the fountain, a new entrance on the east side, and replacing the stonework around the edge of the fountain. Renovations started around August 2018.
The Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners and the City of Fountains Foundation are planning to meet by the fountain on Tuesday, April 16, at the entrance to Swope Park, to celebrate Fountain Day and the completed project.
Two days before the accident, the Delbert J. Haff Circle Fountain was tested. The City of Fountains Foundation posted photos from the test on Facebook, which shows the fountain’s seven spray nozzles — increased from three —shooting into the air.
This story was originally published April 12, 2019 at 11:46 AM.
