beachmouse
Beach Fanatic
I was a competitive swimmer for 15 years, so I've got a definite bias in the matter.
A pool is a very useful thing to have when it comes to teaching water safety classes. Kind of hard to teach swim lessons to preschoolers in the ocean or a creek with a current. It's also nice to have for adult fitness classes, serves as a supervised summer afternoon hang out for the 10-16 year old set, and is an alternative for everyone when the Gulf is too rough and other waterways are too rough. It's a pest free environment for the most part. (Okay, mister mouse did make hand contact with a wolf spider hanging out in the gutter last time we were doing laps)
The county can help subsidize expenses by renting it out to groups- scuba classes, church picnics, day trips for summer day care.
I just hope that if they build it, they're willing to put enough moeny into it to do it right. We're not talking the IUPUI natatorium, but I'd like to see an L shape that's got at least six lanes by 25 yards that go from 4 to 8 feet deep, and then a shallow part of the L that goes from four feet to about a foot and a half with stairs or zero depth without stairs. (stick one of those splash mushrooms there and the small humans will love it) Pay some attention to the engineering- go with a good gutter system that will absorb a lot of wave action when the competitive swimmers race and train. Don't forget to set it up for backstroke flags on the sides and starting blocks on the eight foot side when you're pouring concrete for the pool deck. And set aside land to the side for a kid's 'splash park' even if there are not immediate plans or funds for such a thing.
If someone's serious about this, I'd get in touch with Recreation Services in Bluewater Bay. Their Parkwood Pool is similar to what I'm talking about there- good set up for both competitive and recreational swimming, well-engineered, and while it's going to cost you more than $100K, it's not going to be insanely expensive, especially if you can use locker room at the high school instead of having to build a separate bathhouse.
A pool is a very useful thing to have when it comes to teaching water safety classes. Kind of hard to teach swim lessons to preschoolers in the ocean or a creek with a current. It's also nice to have for adult fitness classes, serves as a supervised summer afternoon hang out for the 10-16 year old set, and is an alternative for everyone when the Gulf is too rough and other waterways are too rough. It's a pest free environment for the most part. (Okay, mister mouse did make hand contact with a wolf spider hanging out in the gutter last time we were doing laps)
The county can help subsidize expenses by renting it out to groups- scuba classes, church picnics, day trips for summer day care.
I just hope that if they build it, they're willing to put enough moeny into it to do it right. We're not talking the IUPUI natatorium, but I'd like to see an L shape that's got at least six lanes by 25 yards that go from 4 to 8 feet deep, and then a shallow part of the L that goes from four feet to about a foot and a half with stairs or zero depth without stairs. (stick one of those splash mushrooms there and the small humans will love it) Pay some attention to the engineering- go with a good gutter system that will absorb a lot of wave action when the competitive swimmers race and train. Don't forget to set it up for backstroke flags on the sides and starting blocks on the eight foot side when you're pouring concrete for the pool deck. And set aside land to the side for a kid's 'splash park' even if there are not immediate plans or funds for such a thing.
If someone's serious about this, I'd get in touch with Recreation Services in Bluewater Bay. Their Parkwood Pool is similar to what I'm talking about there- good set up for both competitive and recreational swimming, well-engineered, and while it's going to cost you more than $100K, it's not going to be insanely expensive, especially if you can use locker room at the high school instead of having to build a separate bathhouse.
