The beginning of construction for Pinson’s new city park is coming very soon, thanks to a contract approved Thursday night.

The Pinson City Council voted to award the construction contract to Clements Dean Building Company LLC, with a price tag of $1.571 million.

That doesn’t include a separate contract for playground equipment for $277,850 to be purchased from J.A. Dawson, through a municipal purchasing cooperative called U.S. Communities.

Once the project gets final approval from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and other regulatory agencies, Clements Dean has 240 days to finish the project. There’s a $250-per-day penalty for finishing late, barring delays caused by weather or other issues beyond the contractor’s control.

When completed, the new park will feature a splash pad, playground, disc golf course, amphitheater and walking trail. It will be located just east of Pinson Blvd. (formerly Center Point Rd.) and north of Sweeney Hollow Rd.

The council also voted to partially fund a part-time nurse’s aide for Kermit Johnson Elementary School, at the request of principal Keith Lankford.

“Sometimes the school has qualified for a [full-time] nurse, but they did not this year,” Mayor Hoyt Sanders explained.

Instead, the city will pay for half of the salary of an aide to staff the school in the mornings. The school’s parent-teacher organization will pick up the other half. The city’s share, about $3,500, will come from its discretionary fund for local schools.

Councilman Joe Cochran reported to the council about the progress on repairs to the grass surface at Pinson Valley High School’s football field, which has been under repair this summer to fix numerous holes and divots.

Cochran said the large sections of sod have been installed in the past week, while the team holds pre-season practices at a field behind the old Rock School.

That news comes days after Jefferson County Schools officials celebrated the opening of a new artificial-turf field at nearby Clay-Chalkville High. Cochran, among others, has been pushing for artificial turf at Willie Adams Stadium for nearly a year; he believes now is the time to step up efforts to make the new surface a reality.

“We want turf to be our goal for next year,” Cochran said.

Sanders said he had met at length with new JefCoEd Supt. Craig Pouncey, and discussed the problems the school has with the field, as well as the lack of a separate practice field.

“Dr. Pouncey went to visit the team over at the Rock School Field and asked the coach why they weren’t using their practice field,” Sanders said. “When Coach [Matt] Glover said, “What practice field?” Dr. Pouncey replied, ‘Are you serious?’”

The Indians play their first home game on Aug. 29, after opening the season the week before in Hartselle.

Sanders also told the council that the Jefferson County Probate Court has approved an annexation election for parts of the Aspen Ridge subdivision, which is now scheduled for Sept. 9.

The council also annexed a property at 4296 Cedar St., and tabled a rezoning request by a proposed business on Old Bradford Road at the request of the applicant.