Pool laid out at aquatic center

LIMA — A lot of things can go wrong with building a public aquatic center.

Partnerships can get strained, the location might not work out and community input can get ignored, but judging by the progress Lima has made on its community aquatic center, it might have avoided all of these potential pitfalls.

“Getting these two pieces of the puzzle completed opens out a tremendous amount of work,” public works director Kirk Niemeyer said about the work currently in progress. “You can’t have contractors working on top of contractors because it’s too crowded and tempers flare as they try to speed up their work.”

Reaching 30 percent completion on the project, as the multipurpose pool has been laid out and work has started on the activity pool, is a huge deal and shows it is right on schedule to open in time for Memorial Day weekend next year.

“A lot of times, you have to work from the ground up and once we get the pools in first, we can start the rest of the work on the ground,” city engineer Ian Kohli said. “We were able to pour the concrete bottom to the pool and the contractor has been installing all the piping and plumbing to service the pool. We’ve started work on the activity pool and the suction boxes.”

Right now, residents could easily recognize the multipurpose pool for what it is, but it will not be until September, after the activity pool has been laid and the grounds have been filled in surrounding the pools, that they will be able to see something that really stands out as being built.

“The enclosure that we’re having installed will allow us to open up in the summer and provide year-round access to the multipurpose pool,” Kohli added. “And that structure is going to be unique.”

While the activity pool will only be available in the summer, it will have a family slide and waterplay features for younger kids, piping for which contractors are currently installing.

Getting this work done during the summer is important to avoid weather that could complicate concrete work.

The most important things have been in place long in advance.

“What is impressive is if you look at the piping here, compared to your normal PVC piping, it is about an eighth to a quarter-inch thick,” Niemeyer said. “I dealt with Schoonover (Pool) and trying to fix that and when you went in the basement, you would see piping made of cast iron. We redid it once and from what I’m seeing this piping will be here in a hundred years so I think it’s a great investment.”

The location of the pool behind a popular area at an intersection serving heavy traffic does not hurt.

“When we did Stadium Park and cut down a mound in front of the street, drivers on Bellefontaine Avenue were able to see soccer and football games from the street so you’re going to have that same effect here,” Niemeyer said. “That’s where we try to put playgrounds because when somebody drives by a city park, we want kids playing front and center because that attracts them into the city. We know there were a lot of memories created at Schoonover, but it’s more centrally located here so getting from point A to point B is easy for families, especially if they’re going along a sidewalk or bike path.”

Work is going on five days a week at the site, but a big development came from city hall Monday (bit.ly/3WrZwVt) when Mayor Sharetta Smith announced donations have reached $2.9 million of the $5 million goal to fund operating costs once the pool is open. “I am grateful to live in a community that sees the importance of building something and sustaining something for future generations to enjoy,” Smith said after a speech at the Lima Rotary Club meeting.

A city spokesperson said Lima is not yet ready to announce who will be in charge of operating the pool, but Niemeyer said the overall budget will be in the public works department and the city will accept a bid from the best, most qualified party to manage the installation.

“And there are going to be a lot of people weighing in on the programming offered here from swim lessons to big-screen movies in the pool,” he added. “A lot of this comes down to thinking about how to manage it with the layout requiring more staff and spending a lot more money to run it. The input of the YMCA, local schools and swim clubs was critical.”

The city broke ground on the project in February (bit.ly/4c8BftE) and announced an expected completion date of April 2025.

Reach Jacob Espinosa at 567-242-0399.