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Funds still needed for pool preparation work
With less than two months until Sunset Pool opens, city officials and park board members are still looking for additional donations, about $5,000 to $8,000, to cover the costs to get the pool ready for the season.
Estimates of about $13,000 to $15,000 have been given to get the pool ready for the 2008 season. The funds are needed to repaint the bottom of the pool with a special pool paint as well as replacing the overhead door at the pool’s entrance. In addition, there are also a few other smaller items that need repaired before the pool opens for business.
Recreation Administrator Abby Ison said some city departments will be providing some in-kind services to get the pool ready, but that is secondary to city business that will always come first.
So far, the city has received a $5,000 donation from Atrium Medical Center. Ison said donations can be made to the city and designated for the pool preparation work, which are also tax deductible. These funds are in addition to the $50,000 annual grant that was donated by AK Steel Corp. to cover operational costs. Cincinnati Pool Management, who will operate the pool in 2008 at a cost of $49,950, also receives the admission fees and concession profits as part of its compensation.
Ison said if the entire amount cannot be secured, only patching work will be able to be done. She’s also hoping the patching done last year will hold up for this year.
Ison also said that Middletown City Council and the Park Board will need to look at ways to provide funding to keep the pool open after 2009, when the last of the AK Steel grant is donated to operate Sunset Pool.
“We need to have a safe public aquatic facility in the city for kids to swim at,” she said. “It’s a quality of life issue.”
So what do you think? Is having a public swimming pool in the city truly a quality of life issue?
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