The Department of Public WORKS?

 

How old are the bleachers?

As I recall, it was early last spring when the Hudson DPW replaced all 20 of the long wooden boards that make up the bleachers at Oakdale Park.  The old boards were in really rough shape for years and had probably been installed decades ago.  Not that anyone really uses the quaint bleachers except for the occasional fisherperson, but the wood certainly shouldn't look like crap or be full of splinters if the bleachers are going to remain.  When I first saw the new, clean, smooth, splinter-free, varnished boards, I was impressed and proud.  That warm, fuzzy feeling didn't last long, though.

Already weathered and exposed

Within a week or two of DPW's installation of the new bleachers, I noticed that the fresh varnish was peeling off on just about every board.   And it's only gotten worse.  It is as if the sun just melted the protectant.  That's the varnish that is supposed to preserve the wood for decades -- for without it, the wood will decay a whole lot quicker.  And the splotchy look is ugly, of course.  Shoddy, amateur work.  And a gross misuse and waste of money.  One wonders if DPW will take the boards off sometime soon and try to get it right the second time.

Don't count on it.