CARIBOU, Maine — The new Teague Park facility is now in the city of Caribou’s hands after the City Council accepted a quit claim deed on behalf of the school administration during a Nov. 16 meeting. The park was relocated across the street from its former Bennett Drive location as part of the $54 million Caribou Community School project.
Caribou City Manager Dennis Marker said that with the new park being built on property owned by the school, the project and property had been under RSU 39 (Caribou and Stockholm school district) ownership.
“As part of the overall new school project, this was essentially replacing what we had in the old Teague Park on the new site,” Marker said. “They were hoping that the city would accept the deed earlier this year, but with the way things were happening with the final punch list, we indicated that we were not going to accept the deed until the final punch list was addressed to the satisfaction of [Caribou Parks and Recreation Superintendent Gary] Marquis and [Caribou Chief Building Official] Penny Thompson.”
A rock with a sign indicating that Teague Park was given to the city by Judah D. Teague in 1897 now sits in front of the park’s new location — adjacent to the Caribou Wellness and Recreation Center and across the street from its previous Bennett Drive location. (Chris Bouchard | Aroostook Republican & News)
As of last week, he said contractors and architects associated with the Caribou Community School project have completed the final touches on the park, and the city now feels confident accepting the deed.
Marquis told council members that he recently saw contractors with Underwood Electric and Soderberg Construction straightening out a utility pole on the property — alleviating one of the major concerns with the project. He added that work on a small catch basin will be quickly addressed in the future, but is not something that precludes the city from taking over the property.
He said there are plans to point the lights on the ball field in the future, but the work would cause damage to the ground if it happened now. There are plans to conclude this aspect of the project once the snow clears in 2021.
Teague Park is now in the city of Caribou’s hands after city council accepted the new property from RSU 39 during a Nov. 16 meeting. (Chris Bouchard | Aroostook Republican & News)
Deputy Mayor Thomas Ayer, who was acting chairperson for the meeting in Mayor Mark Goughan’s absence, asked Marquis if there was a resolution to a fence placed on Daigle Oil Company property adjacent to the park, and if the deed protects the city if another company buys Daigle Oil Company and decides to remove the fence.
Marquis said a provision protecting the fence will be in the deed for DOC, as well as any future companies that may buy that adjacent property.
“Are there any other minute details, or anything else that’s less than perfect on this thing?,” Ayer asked.
“We’re really happy right now,” Marquis said. “The biggest one was the pole, because everybody could see it. It was noticeable that much. Now, it’s straight and everything is put back together. We’re good to go and now we’re going to get ready to start making the ice rink.”
