Clintonville intends to open pool next summer

By Bert Lehman

The city of Clintonville will move $14,695 from the municipal swimming pool budget to the Parks Department budget.

Justin Mc Auly, Park and Recreation director for the city of Clintonville, requested the change in allocation at a Finance Committee meeting, July 18.

Mc Auly told the Finance Committee that with the pool not opening this summer, there is an estimated $45,000 in funds not currently being used. This includes funds designated for salaries and benefits of pool staff that wasn’t hired, gas, water and electric that is not being used, pool maintenance, and chemicals.

Around $11,000 of those funds will be spent. This includes paying Park and Recreation staff because the bathrooms by the pool are still being maintained because they are open for the shelter there. Other miscellaneous expenses would also come out of the $11,000.

In the request to move $14,695 from the pool budget to the parks budgets was a request to use $2,250 for three additional loads of infield mix for ball diamonds at Bucholtz Park, Mc Auly said.

Three loads were already budgeted for, so this would give the city six loads.

Mc Auly said he has received a lot of complaints this year about the condition of the ball diamonds at Bucholtz Park.

“Due to wind, erosion, and also trying to get ballgames going after a rainstorm, our infield is deteriorating,” Mc Auly said. “It’s creating little basins that are filling up with water. We do not have enough infield mix out there.”

Between one and three loads of infield mix is being purchased each year, Mc Auly said. He added that that amount is not enough to maintain three ball diamonds.

“I could probably use six to eight loads per field,” Mc Auly said.

Another use for part of the $14,695 would be for Rohrer Park. Mc Auly said the turf is settling by the playground equipment and rock and dirt fill needs to be added, with mulch on top of that.

“Right now it is kind of a safety hazard,” Mc Auly said. “It’s either remove the equipment or do some sort of repair to this playground.”

To help fix the problems at the playground Mc Auly said he would use $3,435 from the $14,695. He said he’d also like to use another $1,000 to restore the playground equipment that was removed from Olen Park a couple of years ago, and place that equipment in Rohrer Park.

The remaining portion of the $14,695 would be used to hire a part-time custodian to maintain the city buildings — city hall, police department building, community center, and the Rec Center.

Mc Auly said this will allow more time to be spent out in the city’s park system.

Since 2002, Mc Auly said the Parks Department has lost more than 1,000 hours of labor due to cuts in the number of summer employees the department can hire.

Even with the change in allocation of $14,695, the pool budget would still have around $30,000 in it, Mc Auly said.

Committee member Mike Hankins asked if it was possible to place the funds into an account for the pool and carry it over to next year.

Clintonville City Administrator Chuck Kell said that probably could be done, but the city’s policy has been to place it in the undesignated fund balance.

Committee member Jim Supanich asked if it is the intent of the city to get the pool operational in 2017. He said if that is the case, maintenance items will still need to be done to the pool and he asked if there would be adequate funds to cover those costs.

Mc Auly said next year’s budget will include the funds to cover the maintenance of the pool.

The Finance Committee recommended to the city council the change in allocation of $14,695 from the pool budget to the parks budget.

Prior to the vote, Clintonville Mayor Lois Bressette told the committee that the community is expecting the city to reopen the swimming pool next year.

“I want to be sure that we’re not taking funds away from somewhere and we’re not going to make good on that promise,” Bressette said.
The council unanimously approved the reallocation of funds at its meeting the next night.