City cites issues with proposed agriculture park over size, sprinklers

Both building staff and the Columbia Fire Department cited issues with a proposed agriculture park in central city.

The city’s Parks and Recreation Department and a collective of local agriculture groups known as Friends of the Farm are working on the Clary-Shy Park. The park, expected to break ground this fall near West Middle School, will feature a large pavilion to serve as a farmer’s market shelter, along with five acres of land for urban farming.

Parks Director Mike Griggs withdrew the request on Friday for a variance to some city rules regarding building and construction. The proposed 34,900-square-foot project is “over twice the maximum allowable area” for the type of construction sought, according to a city staff memo. The fire department also cited the lack of sprinkler systems throughout the park, including the enclosed bathrooms and storage areas.

The pavilion would also have two “configurations” for the summer and winter seasons. While the summer configuration would be an open air design, the pavilion would be enclosed by vinyl curtains or temporary walls in the winter, according to a letter from architect Bill Oswald. That configuration would bring the building size down to 12,526-square-feet, and not in need of sprinklers. However, the building codes call for sprinklers given the size of the summer configuration.

“The design team believes strict compliance with the letter for the Code creates undue hardship and has no significant effect on the health, safety and welfare of the public or any individual,” the letter reads.

Building Regulations Supervisor John Simon said that once a sprinkler system is added to the pavilion, it will no longer need a variance to build.

Billy Polansky with the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture told ABC 17 News that the project is still in the “design development” phase, and they would look at adding sprinklers to the farmer’s market building. Polansky did not expect the sprinklers to set the design process back, but did say there would be an additional cost for them.

Friends of the Farm has raised $1.9 million toward creating the park, a part of its $5 million fundraising goal, Polansky said to ABC 17 News. The Columbia City Council also approved a $495,000 deal with MU Healthcare for naming rights of the farmer’s market building.

(Editor’s note: An earlier version of the story misidentified the middle school near the park as Jefferson Middle School. Clary-Shy Park is near West Middle School.)