LUCAN - A project to bring a splash pad to Lucan's Elm Street Park took a step forward March 1, when Lucan Biddulph council approved a proposal put forward by a Waterloo-area firm. Recreation Playsystems (RPS) of St. Clements was chosen to spearhead the project, which is being funded in equal parts by the municipal, provincial and federal governments. Lucan Biddulph capped the project price at $200,000 and will use an additional $50,000 to create a building near the splash pad that will include public washrooms.Three companies submitted proposals for the splash pad, but RPS stood out in part because it appeared to have put more thought into the project, according to Lucan Biddulph public works manager Steve McAuley."You could tell that they'd spent more time on it and had kind of gotten to know our community a little bit, and they basically had a little bit more ‘wow' factor," McAuley told the Times-Advocate. The RPS proposal calls for the splash pad to be moulded in the shape of a shamrock, a nod to the area's Irish roots.The proposal also calls for a feature McAuley refers to as a "mega-soaker," which will dump large quantities of water at regular intervals and isn't common to splash pads in smaller towns, McAuley said.Lucan Biddulph will also be able to customize graphics at the park to suit the community, something else McAuley said set the proposal apart.McAuley added he hopes construction on the washroom building will begin in a couple of weeks, depending on weather.Construction on the splash pad itself is expected to start in early-to-mid-May, operating by June 15. "We want to have it operating before school gets out," McAuley said.