Hesitant council approves Colfax pool maintenance

COLFAX — A vote at Monday’s Colfax City Council meeting on proposed maintenance of the municipal pool turned into another ambiguous conversation about the facility’s future.

In the regular monthly meeting, which has become relatively short and light on discussion under the current council, talk about future maintenance cost to the pool sparked the most dialogue of the night from the five Colfax council members.

The group approved $5,846 in repairs to the facility, located in Lewis Park off League Road. The repair list included replacing values, fixing rusted supports, fittings and pipes and scheduled maintenance to the water heater and pool heater, according to a bid estimate submitted by local contractor Dickerson Mechanical. Parts totaled $3,226, with the remaining $2,620 in charges going to labor.

There was an elongated period of silence after Colfax Mayor David Mast called for a motion in support to approve the repairs, but the measure ultimately passed 4-0, with councilman Bryan Poulter abstaining due to his role as the

pool’s director.

But before the vote, councilwoman Karla Jones renewed her call to for a study on the pool to determine if the number of people taking a dip every summer justifies the annual expense. A similar suggestion in early 2016 went without action by the council.

The pool is open to the public from Memorial Day to Labor Day — it’s used for swimming lessons and is the local home of the Tiger Sharks swim team.

The call for a study stirred a cordial exchange between Poulter and Jones on the pool’s yearly maintenance needs.

“I would really like an evaluation of the pool to find out its status,” Jones said

“The status is it’s 40 years old, and either you maintain it or you don’t,” Poulter responded.

“I know, but what’s it going to take yearly to keep it (running)?” she said. ... “I’d just like to have a study done, as far as what percentage of our families are members, is it growing, is it declining? Let’s have some data.”

Public works director Bob Rhone said a Wisconsin-based company has offered to do that evaluation — including usage statistics and a cost estimate of future upkeep — for free. But there is a caveat. For its services, the company requests it’s either awarded bids for any recommended repairs or, Rhone said, “get a fair shot at it.”

The study would also show how improvements in the pool could cause an increase in attendance and create new revenue and compare that to expenses. However, the council took no action and gave city staff no direction Monday in regard to the Wisconsin company’s offer.

“It’s a pretty good evaluation of the community and the pool,” Rhone said. “(The company) specializes in the smaller community pools. They realize where we’re located, that you have water parks (within driving distance). But that’s not just Colfax’s problem. There are a lot of small communities that are in the same boat we are, and sometimes there are things you can do to increase interest.”

Quarry Springs Archery Range

The council also approved several measures Monday involving new labor and future revenue at Quarry Springs Park. In a 5-0 vote, the council approved a job description for part-time workers who will staff Quarry Springs’ new indoor archery range.

The staff will be part-time city employees, working weekdays 4-9 p.m. and weekends 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The staff will be supervised by Rhone and will be scheduled in a manner so the city avoids paying IPERS benefits.

The wages will be covered by revenue generated from archery range memberships and hourly fees.

Colfax Park and Recreation Auxiliary Board President Doug Garrett said the range is slated to open Jan. 21, and has received more than $3,000 in sponsorship dollars form local business and individuals.

The nonprofit parks auxiliary board operates Quarry Springs, but the facility is owned by the city. To properly handle new and future revenue at the park, the council also approved the creation of the Quarry Springs Recreation Trust Fund in a 5-0 vote.

According to documents in January’s council packets, all recreational revenue from park operations will be deposited into a dedicated account run by the city. The account will be handled similarly to the fire and EMS department trust, and will be included in city audits.

Contact Mike Mendenhall at mmendenhall@jaspercountytribune.com