Plains pool in trouble

The Plains Parks and Recreation Board met last Friday, Nov. 19 to discuss the fate of the Plains community pool. The pool, which is in need of several repairs after years of service, could potentially be closed if funds do not come through for repairs.

“We are going to do a fundraising effort that we would like everybody to be involved with,” said Rose Danhof, a Plains community member who has worked closely with the board on the pool issue. “Right now, we’d like to keep it open if we could. However, at some point, it’s important that they realize that it may come down to us closing it to be able to get the work done.”

Much of what the pool is experiencing in terms of maintenance issues can be attributed to the simple wear and tear of seasons of heavy use. For Parks and Recreation Board Chair Jenifer Reynolds, there is one large issue at play.

“It’s getting older and a lot of our equipment that was originally put in is falling apart just through the years,” Reynolds said. “Right now, the issue is the sand filter, and just the filter alone is $52,000, and that doesn’t include the cost of taking care of the building, because it’s a cement block building and we would have to deconstruct part of the building to even get it out.”

Reynolds discussed the failing sand filter, which is part of the system that keeps the pool safe to swim in. It will likely need to be replaced very soon, and in that event, the filter itself is situated in such a place that access to it would require that part of the shower and changing rooms building would be dismantled.

Also, updating the filter could open up issues of compatibility throughout the pool’s whole water circulation system.

“Putting in the new filter might also make us have to get a new circulation pump,” Danhof said.

Part of the problem could come down to regulations, which could potentially mandate an update of the whole system if one aspect is update.

“The issue with some of this is the changes we do make may put us in a different type of requirement were we might have to replace everything at once to be up with the new regulation,” Reynolds said. “That’s a huge issue, because that is just one item where we would have to replace many things in there.”

These issues of maintenance have culminated with the fact that pool is a very large expense for the city. The city has a budget of normally $38,000 for the swimming pool, which takes into consideration the costs for heating, chemicals, lifeguards, and maintenance on the pool. Last year, the pool opened two weeks late because several maintenance issues with the pool itself. So, the end of season income tally was $7,000, which accounted for income from swimming lessons and pool passes. The pool can be rented for private parties, such as birthday parties, and has even been used by some of the local churches to conduct baptisms.

The pool can be rented for $50 an hour, during which time the pool provides two lifeguards, and the city pays the lifeguards to be there.

“The city doesn’t make much money at all off of somebody renting the pool,” Reynolds said.

“Every year, we’re in the hole,” Reynolds said. “And that’s why if we had to close the pool in order to raise the money, it would have to be closed for two to three years. By then, who knows what the costs will be.”

 Reynolds also addressed the fact that much of the equipment would continue to deteriorate if the pool was closed and it sat unused for that amount of time.

Not only does the water handling system need work, the rest of the pool’s facilities could stand some repairs as well.

“Shower rooms and everything need to be updated,” Danhof said. “They’re in really poor shape.”

The board has already begun looking forward to the 2011 summer season, and the outlook is not exactly positive. Essentially, the fate of the pool lies in the ability of the filtering system to continue to function as long as possible.

“We really hope that the sand filter holds up, so that we can stay open while we raise money to do this,” Danhof said.

“If the sand filter totally shuts down, we’re through, Reynolds added.”

The sand filter serves two purposes in its care for the pool water. First of all, it maintains the water at a swimmable quality. Second, it keeps water from becoming cloudy, which would pose a serious safety risk. If the water would become too cloudy, the lifeguards would be unable to see if anyone is in distress or submerged at the bottom of the pool.

“We can’t put the children in that kind of danger,” Danhof said.

Danhof said that the upcoming season will be largely dictated by the filter.

“If it runs for a week, it runs for a week and then we close,” Danhof said.

Both Reynolds and Danhof see the pool as a valuable resource for the community. It provides the opportunity for children to be enrolled in swimming lessons, a valuable life skill.

Also, the pool is utilized by the high school swim team. Not only does the team use the pool for practices, the team also hosts a large swim meet there every year. This brings a huge influx of people into the community, which is a boost for local businesses.

“We usually have anywhere from 150 to 300 swimmers, so that means all of the families from all of the western part of the state,” Danhof said. “We swim with teams from all across the state.”

Reynolds also testified to the size of the meet.

“The whole park is filled with tents and campers all around,” Reynolds said. “It’s quite an event.”

“It’s huge, and of course they have to buy gas before they head home, and groceries while they’re here,” Danhof said. “McGowen’s loves us, and the gas stations love us. It’s one of the biggest things the community sees.”

In addition to the meet, the swim team and the swimming lessons, Reynolds said that the pool simply provides area kids with somewhere to go during the summer months.

“It gives the children something to do in the summer,” Reynolds said. “We have some children that are there from the minute it opens to the minute it closes.”

The pool was created from an initiative funded by a large donation from a community member who had passed away. The individual’s kids were on the swim team. The pool also came to be as a way to keep people from facing the unpredictable and often dangerous currents of the Clark Fork River. The Committee for Safe Swimming, a community organization, raises money to continue to work towards this goal, to keep kids out of the river.

“The river is very unsafe. We’ve had many, many drown in the river. Some of them have been adults. The current is just too strong,” Reynolds said.

Members of the Parks and Recreation Board would definitely like to see the resources of that park continue to be used

“That whole park over there is used. That park is a great asset to the community and we’d hate to lose it,” Reynolds said.