"Contractor promises work will be complete by May 12, 2004,” says a fading sign next to St. James Park House (officially known as the Comfort Station and Community Meeting Center). As local residents will attest, this promise was broken, and today the building remains fenced off, boarded up, and in a sad state of disrepair.

According to Ashe Reardon, a parks department spokesman, a succession of contractors has defaulted on the project since spring 2003. In all, five companies have backed out, and this, said Reardon, explains the delay in the park house’s renovation. “It’s been really unfortunate,” he said.

There may, however, be a flicker of light at the end of the tunnel. The project’s bonding company, St. Paul Travelers, has hired a new general contractor, Integrated Construction Management. “Fully-fledged construction will start in the next few weeks, and we hope to be complete early this summer,” said Reardon.

Work will include the replacement of windows, doors and frames; new interior walls and finishes; and handicap accessible offices and bathrooms. Reardon added that much of the plumbing and electrics had been completed by previous contractors.

“We’re committed to getting this project done,” said Reardon. “It’s an old building [the park house was built in 1936], and our goal is to bring it up internally and make it into a useful multi-purpose space.”

In a project separate from the park house, four of the parks disintegrating staircases have been restored using money from the filtration plant windfall. Three are at Creston Avenue and one is at Jerome Avenue at the north end of the park. Two others will be renovated at Morris Avenue and work will begin this spring on the entrance by 193rd Street and Jerome. Later in the year work will be done on the park’s lawns, benches, fences, and perimeter wall. In total, $3.75 million is being spent.