City: Wave pool problems not immediate need
Dave Pike, city Parks and Recreation Department director, stands near the base of the wave pool in City Park, pointing out areas where crews applied aquapoxy to small cracks in the pool’s surface. The damages to the pool are concerns, Pike said, but not immediate needs. Enlarge photo
May 30, 2008
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Craig — Summertime is on the horizon, and the City Park wave pool will be there when the time comes to dip your feet, city officials said.
Dave Pike, Craig Parks and Recreation Department director, said the wave pool might open as early as next week.
Sylvia Griffiths, Pool Complex aquatics manager and lifeguard, said the wave pool is one of the city’s bigger attractions.
“People have been coming from Steamboat and Meeker and Rifle for years, from all over,” she said. “It’s really a Yampa Valley attraction.”
But although the wave pool is important to the city, some issues in the future may make it an expensive toy for residents.
An engineering report from OLC Aquatics estimated the wave pool could use roughly $339,000 in repairs and renovations to fix ongoing issues.
None of those issues are dire needs, however, Pike said.
“The pool isn’t in danger of failing now,” Pike said. “These projects aren’t things that need to be done this year. They don’t need to be done next year. We just wanted to have an engineer come out and look at it so we know what we’re dealing with.”
Pike looked over the wave pool Thursday.
He pointed to cracks along the walls and spots of aquapoxy that plug up the cracks and a rickety ladder that needs some work.
“Sooner or later, we just need to address the problem of resurfacing the pool,” Pike said.
Each year, the Parks and Recreation Department hires workers to perform what has become regular maintenance.
Pike said city officials are not sure why the pool’s surface has been wearing since it opened in 1986, if it had to do with faulty materials, faulty application of the surface or weather.
OLC Aquautics estimated resurfacing might cost about $141,000.
But, generally, this kind of maintenance can be expected with a pool, Pike said. Nothing about the pool’s condition represents an immediate danger to swimmers.
Some of the pool’s other issues include recommended renovations to the exterior to limit water settling outside the walls, a possible fix to the concrete wall separating the wave fan and the water and a possible renovation that would allow multiple kinds of waves instead of the standard pattern now used.
All together, OLC Aquatics estimated those projects could be $124,000.
Pike said the city may have enough to look at funding those projects as early as 2009.
His department receives about $98,000 each year from the Conservation Trust Fund, made up of state lottery proceeds. In 2008, Parks and Recreation had a $263,000 capital construction budget.
It’s too early to say when funds will actually become available for wave pool projects, Pike said, but money probably will be there before the wave pool becomes unusable.
He also said the Craig City Council’s decision to spend $20,000 on recreation center developments should not affect wave pool projects.
That money was unbudgeted for 2008, Pike said, and makes up less than 6 percent of the wave pool projects’ costs.
On Tuesday, the Council approved taking the money out the Conservation Trust Fund, with Councilor Joe Herod casting the only opposing vote.
Herod said he would like to see that money used for the city’s existing facilities.
The Council approved the money to contract with Denver-based firm Sink Combs Dethlefs.
The company will organize community meetings to discuss what features a recreation center should have, prepare preliminary site plans and a site layout and organize a financial team to prepare a bond question and secure lender financing, if necessary.
The city isn’t trying to push a recreation center on the public and disregard other concerns like the wave pool, Pike said.
“I think both projects have equal merit,” he said about the recreation center and the wave pool.
The recreation center proposal came back around because of input from city residents and the recent citizen survey, Pike said. The survey showed 63 percent of respondents would favor a tax increase to fund a recreation center.
“If that survey came back and said only 20 percent of people responding favored a tax increase, we probably wouldn’t be doing this,” he said. “It’s citizen-driven. This is not city-driven.”
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30 May 2008 at 6:38 a.m.
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Taylor (Anonymous) says…
Sink Combs Dethiefs - how appropriate.
30 May 2008 at 6:57 a.m.
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grannyrett (Anonymous) says…
Maybe a new rec center isn't city driven. Maybe it's Dave Pike driven.
30 May 2008 at 8:14 a.m.
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50cal (Anonymous) says…
I thought the name was kinda ominous. Thank god we have Dave Pike he knows what is good for us. We can't even throw him out of office.
30 May 2008 at 8:34 a.m.
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dentedfender (Anonymous) says…
I would hate to venture a guess as to what it cost the taxpayers to get an engineer on site to evaluate the condition of the pool. I sure hope it wasn't another $20,000
30 May 2008 at 8:59 a.m.
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50cal (Anonymous) says…
20,000 would be chump change. More like 50,000 or 60,000 for something of this magnitude.
9 July 2008 at 11:25 a.m.
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sljsmom (Anonymous) says…
if everyone had this attitude, our homes would be falling down around our ears and the city would be citing us for something. Joe Herod is the only council member who is doing what he is supposed to be doing, thinking of the majority! City of Craig, take care of what you have, before you start asking for more! Why should we support anything new when they don't take care of what is here already? Give them a rec center and they will just let it fall apart, while they are on to something new and better. Parks & Rec couldn't even get refs for youth softball!
10 July 2008 at 8:13 a.m.
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taxslave (Anonymous) says…
How long do you suppose before they (city employees) vote themselves a pay increase due to the rising costs of energy?
I wonder how long before the council is filled and overflowing with unhappy people demanding an explanation….especially next winter when they can't afford the diesel for the snow plows….or the 23% increase in the cost of heating (announced last month or so, full page in CDP), commercial and domestic. No one talks about reality. They're like a kid in the candy store at this point.
10 July 2008 at 9:40 a.m.
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grannyrett (Anonymous) says…
$339,000 in needed repairs right now? Not a dire need? What planet do you come from Dave Pike? We need a rec center when we can't afford to take care of what we already have? What are you thinking? Or, are you thinking? Wait, i got it! He wants it to be the dave pike rec center!