Seems everywhere I go these days I am congratulated on the funding for the projects at the Aquatic Center. Indeed, it has been a long time coming and it seems that all of Salida is excited about improvements to the Aquatic Center. I’d like to take this opportunity to explain the scope of the planned projects and keep you informed of the progress.
As you may know, in September 2008 we received a $442,000 grant from the Department of Local Affairs to remedy the hot water transmission line. We have been working with engineers from Schmuesser Gordon Meyer and local surveyor Bob Biglow to design a transmission line that will deliver water to the Aquatic Center between 110 and 120 degrees. Work is progressing and we anticipate being able to bid this project out later this spring.
Restoring hot water to the Aquatic Center will reestablish the facility as the icon it once was, drawing tourists and locals to swim and soak in our unparalleled water.
The second project involves reopening the locker rooms in the east wing. Structural issues with the east-wing roof forced us to close the locker rooms two years ago. These structural issues prevent us from simply putting a new roof on or even from replacing the roof entirely.
We have created a plan that allows us to reopen the locker rooms in the short term, and, in the long term, provide the community with a usable pavilion for community gatherings.
The solution entails building a post and beam structure over the east wing that will protect the existing roof thereby allowing us to safely reopen the locker rooms.
Ultimately, our plans call for new locker rooms on the west side of the building. When funding is available, we will tear down the west wing and build new locker rooms, new hot baths, a new lobby and a multi-purpose room for classes and meetings. Once this is completed and we no longer need the locker rooms on the east side, they will be torn down, leaving our post and beam structure for community events such as family and high school reunions, annual company parties and birthday parties.
The post and beam project is going out to bid next week, with bids due on Wednesday, February 25. To obtain a bid package, contractors can contact Schmuesser Gordon Meyer at 970-349-5355. Work will commence this spring and we plan to have the locker rooms reopened before summer.
I want to be clear that we are not planning to spend tremendous amounts of capital on renovating the existing locker rooms. Again, plans call for these locker rooms to ultimately be torn down. While we’d love shiny, new locker rooms, spending a lot of money to upgrade something that will be torn down is not a sound use of tax-payer dollars. Our goal is to reopen the locker rooms as they are more user friendly than our current changing rooms, and continue to work towards funding appropriate, new locker rooms and hot baths to the west as part of our master plan.
Trish Bews, Director of the Salida Recreation Department
Trish,
Thank you very much for being there for the pool, and working through the tough funding and political issues to make this happen.
The pool is a wonderful community asset, and keeping it in top shape is a good long term investment in Salida, and its people. Just ask the dozens of children swimming each week for stroke clinic, and the oldsters at the arthritis classes.
mark