After a hot summer without a pool, Friends of the Pool is raising funds to patch the pool liner to keep the pool open this summer.
The liner costs $160,000 and will extend the life of the pool for five to seven years. The last liner was replaced eight years ago.
The Wagner Memorial Pool is at a crossroads. It was built above a fluctuating water table which, over 60 years, created significant cracks in the concrete. To replace the pool at its current location would require a steel pool, which did not exist in 1966. A steel pool, more common in earthquake zones such as California, is also considerably more expensive than a concrete pool.
Friends of the Pool (FOP) would like to move to another location entirely. Instead of applying funds toward a new steel pool, they would use it for a land purchase to build a less expensive concrete pool.
FOP has been paying for repairs and covering the cost of staff and maintenance of the pool during the summer. This year, they need to raise $60,000 for lifeguards and chemicals for the pool which, in addition to the pool liner, is $220,000 in all. FOP is optimistic they can do it.
FOP has been paying for these costs since it was founded in 2005. A proposition to create a metropolitan park district to fund the pool was soundly defeated in 2023 when voters rejected a permanent taxing authority, an unelected board to manage the pool, and confusion about what a community pool would ultimately cost. Following public input via community meetings, FOP asked for two swimming pools within an enclosed space to accommodate bad air quality during wildfire season. The two swimming pools, with different temperatures and depths, was needed to accommodate competitive and recreational swimmers. A consultant hired by FOP said such a plan would cost $20 million. During the campaign to form a metropolitan park district, called Methow Aquatics District, FOP denied that there was a plan or that the pool would cost that much.
FOP says its board members are looking at sites that have good accessibility and aren’t on a flood plane. Once a site is secured, the design of the pool can begin. Costs will depend on variables, according to FOP, and they will have phased construction, with additional features added as funds become available. FOP says a basic pool is better than no pool.
A new pool would be designed and built during the seven year life span on the current pool’s liner.
If your child is interested in joining the Killer Whales Swim Team this summer, please register here.
To donate to FOP, click here.
For more information about FOP, click here.
