I'm a bit confused. At the public meeting that I attended at the incubator,
I understood you to say that the "designs" that were being shown around
were just preliminary ideas, for general discussion purposes, and that the
final pool design had yet to be determined. This is the impression that I
received from other members of the pool committee, too. Now it sounds like
the pool committee has fixed on a specific 25 yard, 8 lane design with
"play" lagoon.
I disagree with you on a number of points. One is that 2/3 of Ghormley was
underutilized because it was too deep. For the past 10 years, the Moscow
Swim Team has tried to rent Ghormley at any time of the day for outdoor
practice. We would have loved the deep end that you have characterized as
"still water." The team was consistently turned down by the city because
there was no time when the pool was sufficiently "empty" enough to
accomodate the team. (Please note that I said "rent.")
Secondly, I understood you to say at that same meeting that making the
outdoor pool 50 meters would add only about $500,000. This would be about
an additional 10 to 15% and make a lot of people very happy--many of whom
right now are unhappy that there won't be an indoor facility.
A 50 meter outdoor pool would enable recreational swimmers to have all the
toys they want. Take a look at the 50 meter pools at Boise Y, Moses Lake,
and Spokane to see how that could be accomplished. It would also be big
enough to accommodate lap swimmers.
As for competition, while there might be only one or two competitions in
the pool each year, swim meets bring in a considerable amount of money to
the community and shouldn't be ignored. We are talking 350-500 swimmers and
their families who will use hotels, restaurants, movie theaters, grocery
stores, gas stations, and the shopping malls during the 2-3 days of a swim
meet. Over the 10-20 years that Moscow would be paying for this pool, we
could easily bring the additional $500,000 a 50 meter pool would cost into
the community through swim meets alone.
More importantly, we have about 200 swimmers in Moscow and Pullman who
compete just about every weekend during the summer in 50 meter pools, but
they are currently training in 25 yard pools. This is kind of like a
basketball team training with a basket that's 2 feet shorter than what
they'll be shooting for in a game. Since the Pullman swim team can scarcely
get enough training time in the Reaney pool (for the same reason as MST
couldn't get time at Ghormley--the deep lap pool as well as the deep end of
the recreational pool are too busy during the day), I would bet that they
would love to train in a new 50 meter pool in Moscow. Now, it may not be
worth it to build these kids an indoor facility, but I certainly think we
can take their needs into account inasmuch as it would only add to the
benefits of an outdoor pool while not taking anything away. Certainly if we
had 200 basketball players, soccer players, or baseball players competing
we would make sure they had an adequate facility.
Lois Melina
----------
> From: hodge@moscow.com
> To: vision2020@uidaho.edu
> Subject: Swim Pool Size
> Date: Monday, February 23, 1998 8:22 AM
>
> I am writing in response to the question several people have asked
> concerning the size of a new pool.
>
> The existing Ghormley pool is 9000 SF, of which about 2/3 is under
utilized.
> Mostly because of it's depth. The little kids don't want to play in
water
> that is over their heads. The design of the new facility recognized this
> fact and placed most of the emphasis on the leisure component. About 60%
of
> the new facility is in shallow water, accessible to all. It still
includes
> 8 lanes, 25 yards long for lap and competition swimming. That is the
same
> size as the existing UI pool. The thinking is that more people will want
to
> use the leisure area. The new pool, as designed, will be a bit larger
than
> Ghormley at 10,000 SF plus.
>
> Some people have suggested the pool be a 50 meter length as a way of
> accompanying growth in our community. The pool committee disagrees with
> this concept. If we wish to add more surface water for the future, it
> should be placed where the majority of the people will use it; the
leisure
> component. Adding more length to the lanes will only add more still
water
> for the future. Few lap swimmers want or need 50 meters. The major
reason
> the pool committee could see for going to 50 m was for competition. One
or
> two swim meets a year did not justify the additional expense. To
increase
> from the proposed design to 50 m would cost an additional $800,485.00.
>
> Larry Hodge
> Pool Committee Member
> Hodge and Associates, Inc.
> P.O. Box 8728
> 125 E. Third
> Moscow, Idaho 83843
>
> e-mail: hodge@moscow.com
> Voice: (208) 882-3520
> FAX: (208)882-2622