Community Pools at Risk of Closing
Just as the temperatures take another spike, your neighborhood pool may be at risk of closing. This is the first summer the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act is in effect. It's named for a little girl who died after being trapped under water by a pool drain. But fixing the old drains comes at a price not everybody can afford.
Just about everyone in South Pittsburg has memories of the pool at Loyd Park. Patricia Hill's daughter once life-guarded here. "The children, the kids had a real good time there and they had two pools back in the day. One has been closed for some time." Now this one is about the share the same fate. The problem is their drain down in the deep end doesn't meet new federal guidelines. 300 people a year get caught in the suction of drains and can't swim out. And they are expensive to replace.
"It's going to run us probably $8,000 to $10,000 to bring the pool up to just that," says South Pittsburg City Administrator Tom Landers. "Plus if we're going to do that we need to renovate the pool then we're talking about getting into big money." Now leaders there are looking at their options, which include replacing the 1963 facility with a new splash park. But money is tight and even though lawmakers ordered the new system, no money is being provided to comply. "Everyone seems to tell us what to do they just don't want to tell us how to do it or how to pay for it," says Landers.
He knows he wants something here, as does the community. Something to keep kids active and out of trouble. A place where 50 years from now they'll be able to tell their own stories of fun. "Well I think it's sort of sad because I think young people need something to occupy their time," adds Hill.
Landers says he's checked with his insurance company and he's ok to stay open until next month but a specific date to close the pool hasn't been announced. Meanwhile, a spokesperson with the Tennessee Department of Health disagrees. She says if public pools are working in good faith to fix the drain then they can stay open but if they have no plans to renovate then they should close. Still because it's a federal law, state inspectors can't take any action if communities aren't in compliance.
We also checked and the city of Chattanooga upgraded all of their community pools except one. Instead, they decided to close a one-foot kiddie pool at the Carver Recreational Center.
