The Columbia Pool project, beset by delays, will not be ready for public use until August, at least three months past the most recent projected opening date, according to a report delivered at Tuesday’s Turlock City Council meeting.
During a groundbreaking ceremony in Columbia Park last November, which included about 80 elementary-school-age students, officials promised the project would be open in time for the summer swimming season.
District 2 councilmember Rebecka Monez campaigned heavily on the Columbia Pool issue during the 2020 election.
“I’m ecstatic,” Monez said in November. “This has been almost three years in the making, and we are on target for a May 1 opening.”
But public works director Erik Schulze was tasked with delivering the disappointing news to the city council.
“We had to adjust the timeline for when the project is going to be completed,” said Schulze. “Our contractor faced 38 days of delays out of a possible 50 working days due to inclement weather. Concurrent with that, our public restroom company informed the city that they encountered construction setbacks and would be 30 days late with their delivery.
“Mother Nature has not been kind to us.”
Monez, who said kids in her district were staying up late to watch the council meeting, said they would not be happy with the news.
“I’m pretty sure that all my kids are throwing things at their TV screens right now,” she said.
The Columbia Pool was first constructed in 1957 and has undergone only minor repairs since 1990. The pool has been closed since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Overall, the project will cost about $9.1 million, which takes into account construction, demolition of the old pool, and the purchase of pre-built structures for a concession stand, restrooms and a facilities/storage hut.
The city is covering nearly $5.1 million of the project with money from its pilot cannabis program, and utilizing an additional $3.8 million in leftover American Rescue Plan Act funds. A grant from Turlock Irrigation District will cover another $200,000.
The lengthy pool closure has not affected the splash pads adjacent to the pool, where children have been able to beat the heat.
When completed, the pool will cover 6,822 square feet with a deep end that will be just over 8 feet. It will also feature ADA-accessible ramps, and a heating system expected to hasten the start of future swim seasons, probably around March, and extend it until about Halloween.
In other action Tuesday, the council voted 3-2 to approve a one-time five-year extension of the master lease and regulatory agreement with United Samaritans Foundation for properties located on 3rd Street and A Street — used for affordable housing.
Councilmembers Cassandra Abram, Kevin Bixel and Pam Franco voted in favor of the extension, while Monez and Mayor Amy Bublak were in opposition.
The council also took action on the allocation of a $13.2 million surplus from the city’s general fund.
City staff recommended committing $8 million into a Section 115 trust to fund city pensions, with the remaining $5.2 million going into a capital improvement fund.
The council rejected the proposal by a 4-1 vote — only Abram favored for the proposal — and eventually settled on committing $5 million to the trust, $6 million to various roads projects, and $2.2 million into the capital improvement fund. The amended proposal was carried by a 3-2 vote, with Bublak, Franco and Monez voting to approve.
