Winamac Town Council members are being asked once again to consider a community pool after some new information has come to light that could potentially cut down on initial installation costs.
When Winamac Town Council members met Monday evening, Councilwoman Judy Heater initially took a seat in the audience to speak on behalf of the pool committee. Other members of the pool committee as well as Park Board president Courtney Poor and several residents, who are in favor of the project, were in attendance to show their support.
First, she read a letter into the record from a long-time Winamac resident who wrote expressing his dismay in the council’s decision to stop pursuing the pool renovation project and also shared some aspects of his life that displayed the importance of having a community pool.
Heater went on to tell members that the company BioNova offers chemical-free, natural swimming pools that cost approximately $300,000 for the biological filtration equipment plus the cost of construction. That is half of the original estimate for pool installation which was about $600,000.
She explained that an additional $10,000 would need to be spent on a preliminary feasibility study before any design or planning could begin. Through the study, BioNova reps would provide assessment and evaluation Indiana Public Health Sanitary Code in relation to this project and provide recommendations for the best practices related to the design, planning and construction of the pool facility.
Heater said that aside from continuous fundraising that is planned, the committee is interested in applying for grants to help cover costs. However, that option is not available to them without the backing of the Town Council.
Though the cost of installation could be reduced, Clerk-Treasurer Melanie Berger reminded Heater that long-term maintenance would still be an aspect of funding that would need to be better established before the town can seriously pursue this project.
One thing Heater mentioned was that if the committee could obtain a grant to help offset installation costs, then the money raised from donations so far, which is around $130,000, could be put toward maintenance to address that concern.
No official actions were taken last night, but Town Council President Tom Murray asked Heater to check into the compliance requirements with the Department of Homeland Security and the Indiana Health Department to ensure that a pool of this kind would be permitted in town before they make any decisions on the matter.
