I was home in Miles City this past weekend and I was surprised to see the water fountain at Wiboux Park falling apart. The side that faces west to Strevell Street has large chunks of the fountain falling off. Some general maintenance could go a long way or is the city just waiting for it to become so bad that it has to be removed? It would be sad to lose this feature of our town because of the city's neglect.

Well said Shannon! The neglect is more than sad.

It IS a memorial and should be treated as such. I'm wondering if other memorials will eventually be treated likewise.

Sad, indeed.

Okay, I'm tossing my name in, too, as someone who has seen this and thinks it's a shame. Not being an expert, but I bet this would not be that hard to fix. Oh, the fix would be a patch and might only last 25 years, but when the first piece fell out, it was small. The longer you wait, the bigger the chunks. And, people tend to be drawn to something falling apart to help the process.

So, what to do?

I brought this item before the City Council at our last meeting. The city is aware of the situation. There wasn't enough money in this year's budget to get it fixed. We are still going through the budget process for fiscal year 09-10. Hopefully there will be money to fix it.

Does the City have an estimate of what it would cost to repair the fountain? Perhaps private donations could help with the cost of repair?

how cool would it be if they got it working again? if safety is an issue, iron fence around the edge would be nice. howz about a fundraiser?

Hey Mayor Joe.......???????

I have antique iron fencing I would be willing to donate.

This really makes my deep thought seem like a very plausible idea....

The Woman's Club has considered taking on the Wibaux Park Fountain i.e. the Florence Stacy Memorial Fountain as a project. We are off for the summer but I will suggest it move to the top of the list this fall.

I suspect kids just can't resist picking off the concrete. Sigh.

That fountain isn't really that deep, once you look inside, but last time it was running, it was impossible to keep kids out of it. Maybe the new pool there is more attractive.

If the fountain were reclaimed I'm not sure you could keep even the big kids (like me, for example) out of it during the occasional midnight reverie.

Kelly's right, and so is Richard in an eerily clairvoyant way. The issue has come before the City, most recently as an item near the top of a punch list of suggestions to the Rotary Club as to projects that would most benefit from the proceeds of the recent Duck Race. At the top of that list was the reconstruction of the floating dock in the Oasis, which the Rotarians graciously decided to fund this year.

The City Council will receive my Executive Budget on Monday. One of the key objectives this year is to adopt a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for Miles City. Such a plan would require the City to identify, plan, fund, and predictably (and reliably) invest in equipment and projects that provide for lasting public safety and improve the quality of life in Miles City.

The Wibaux Fountain would likely qualify as such a project. On the other hand, it may be the beneficiary of next year's Duck Race.

The former parks guy, Chuck Richards, was interested in this years ago and actually got it going. For years the fountain had been filled with dirt and turned into a giant planter, which was interesting. I'm not sure if the current cement bottom of the bowl was poured after the dirt was removed (bet the answer is out there), and Chuck had found a nice brass spray head. He actually hooked water up and everything, but the water was not on a circulating pump, just fed in and over flowed out. At least, that is how my memory serves me. (I'm sure I wrote nearly this same thing in a post a few years back.) Oh, I imagine if the fountain where shut off at night, it would not be nearly as much an attraction. As for during the day, sure people will get in it. Do like Great Falls, throw in a ton of ducks and geese all defecating all over the place and believe me no one will want to go in the water. As for you about to draw a comparison to the fountain and the city pool, as the Fonz would say, "Sit on it."

If someone in Miles wants to start a fund to raise money to restore the fountain, I'll sure kick in a few bucks. I'll donate whether it it's the City or a civic group that decides to tackle the job.

It's nice to see people not only saying, "I think something ought to be done about this!" but also saying, "What can I do to help?"

Very cool.