PARKS VS POOLS, PUBLIC VS PRIVATE

Earlier this the week, The Star Press published a front page story about one group's proposal for reviving Tuhey Pool. The currently-closed pool's future was also the feature topic of Thursday night's "Chat with the Mayor" session at Carnegie Library in Muncie. I attended the session to hear first-hand what the city's position is.

For those who missed the newspaper story, a private group has drafted a plan, complete with a professionally produced conceptual illustration of a renovated Tuhey Pool, surrounded by a water park called Tuhey Commons. The consortium includes members of a group called UNISON, the Muncie Family YMCA, and the city park board. They're way ahead of other groups and individuals interested in Tuhey Pool's future--they've already acquired a $50,000 planning grant from American Electric Power, and more importantly, they've received a commitment from Mayor Sharon McShurley to support a bond issue of up to $2,000,000 for repairs at Tuhey. According to The Star Press, re-opening the current pool AND developing the adjacent water park could cost as much as $7,500,000.

On Thursday, Mayor McShurley publicly stated her support for the $2,000,000 bond issue. But she also later told the audience she wouldn't spend any more than $500,000 on repairs to re-open Tuhey Pool for 2011. That begs the question--why do we need a bond issue that is four times the amount needed to re-open Tuhey? I'm still waiting to hear a good answer.

There is at least one other group organizing in Muncie, one with a different view of what to do with Tuhey Pool, and more broadly, Tuhey Park. In the interests of full disclosure, I attended one of that group's meetings last week as a swim parent, and plan to continue being involved in its efforts. I speak only for me in this blog, though, not the group as a whole.

Our group's approach differs from the Tuhey Commons concept in a major way--we believe that repairing or building ANYTHING for strictly outdoor use would be a waste of money. Whether it's a competition pool, a wading pool, or a "sprinkle park" (Mayor McShurley's term), Indiana's climate will limit their usefulness. If the entire Tuhey Commons concept had already been built, had opened today and stayed open through Labor Day 2010, it would operate for a maximum of 101 days this year. When you consider the unavoidable bad weather days of summer (too cool to swim, or too rainy), and the fact that most school systems resume classes in mid-August, your realistic operations calendar is much shorter.

But let's assume we have great weather all summer and never miss a day. Tuhey Commons, as it's being proposed now, wouldn't generate a DIME in swimming or water park revenues on the remaining 264 days of the year. That's an awfully long time to sit dormant.

What would be better? Again, speaking strictly for me, a facility that could operate, be on the property tax rolls, and generate revenue 365 days a year. We're talking about an indoor-outdoor natatorium or aquatic center, complete with a water park under the roof. Take a look at the privately owned and operated Splash Universe in Shipshewana, Indiana. It's a combination indoor water park/hotel/restaurant. Now add a competition pool on the other side of it. We'd have exactly what the people of Muncie deserve, a first-rate facility that covers the needs of everyone, from casual swimmers and vacationers to high-level competitive swimmers.

That will likely cost millions of dollars, and I am far from naive about who will have to pick up the lion's share of the tab. It will have to be, and should be, the private sector, perhaps with leverage from the public sector.

Key members of the McShurley administration seem content to put a band-aid on Tuhey Pool, re-open it next summer, and operate it at a loss. So if you love the sport of swimming, or love someone else who does, and you want to see a better POOL for Muncie, NOW is the time to get involved, speak up, and DEMAND it.

If we wait any longer, a great opportunity will have been squandered, and it will be too late.