Plain City Council is undecided as to whether the village will open its aquatic center for the 2020 season. If council chooses to open, strict safety guidelines imposed by the Ohio Department of Health must be enforced. To meet the guidelines, the pool would be divided into nine sections for household units. Families would be required to stay in their specific section, about a third of a lane in size, and maintain distance from others. (Photo submitted)
Plain City Council is still undecided as to whether the village’s aquatic center will open this season.
During Tuesday’s village council meeting, which was held virtually via Zoom, Village Administrator Nathan Cahall discussed staff’s recommendation not to open the pool, although council did not move forward with a decision.
“There’s a lot to weigh and there’s no right answer to this, there’s no wrong answer to this,” Cahall said.
When considering whether the pool could our should open for the season, Cahall said staff weighed two things: the safety of employees and pool-goers and the experience staff would be able to provide.
Although Gov. Mike DeWine allowed for the opening of pools Tuesday, Cahall explained that there are strict safety guidelines imposed by the Ohio Department of Health.
Based on those guidelines, Cahall said he and Parks and Recreation Director Linda Granger created a list of operating procedures and rules that must be followed if the pool opens.
To ensure social distancing in the pool, Cahall said it would be divided into nine sections that are each about a third of a lane in size.
Household units will be assigned a section that they cannot leave during their time in the pool. For that reason, Granger said it is likely a parent or guardian will be required to be in the pool with children to ensure they do not enter other sections.
The deep end of the pool would not be sectioned off, Granger added, but would only be open to adults who still must social distance.
Granger said the capacity of the pool would drop to between 18 and 45 individuals at a time, depending on how many people are in each section.
Families will also be assigned specific chairs and areas they must stay within when not in the water, Cahall said.
The diving board, tube slide and umbrella kiddie swing will not open. Showers would be closed, as well.
The restroom will be open, but Cahall said a staff member would act as a “bathroom attendant” and monitor the number of people allowed in at a time and disinfect between individuals.
There will be no face-to-face concession stand, Cahall said, but vending machines would be available.
Cahall said swim lessons and swim team practices are not recommended either due to difficulties enforcing social distancing.
No season passes would be sold, Cahall said, and families must reserve a day pass for a two-hour slot in advance online. Due to limited time at the pool, Cahall said entry would cost $3 per person.
After each two-hour slot, staff will disinfect and sanitize chairs and other items used by each attendee before admitting the next group.
Finances were not one of the two sticking points staff considered in their recommendation, Cahall said. Even so, he said staff is aware that increased staffing required to enforce safety guidelines and a potential decrease in attendance will likely result in a financial loss.
He said operating the pool for the season will result in a projected loss of $70,000 to $90,000.
Council member Darren Lee said he did not feel it was “fiscally responsible” to lose that amount of money to give residents a “bad experience” without social interaction.
“It’s basically going to become a place to come in, take a dip and leave,” he said.
Cahall agreed that aquatic operations for 2020 would not meet the standards typically expected by pool-goers.
“It does not provide the level of guest experience we try to provide and endeavor to provide,” he said.
Council member John Rucker added, “I don’t think people have any concept of how restrictive this is going to be and I think they’re going to be shocked when they find out.”
However, Council President Jody Carney said she feels it is in the best interest of taxpayers to open the aquatic center.
“We need to stop focusing on reasons we can’t open and start focusing on reasons we can open,” Carney said.
Resident Carrie Hicks, who is a registered nurse with four children, said she felt the pool is a “safe place for children this summer” because the coronavirus does not easily transfer from chlorinated surfaces or in the presence of UV rays.
She urged council to open the pool, adding that the age of attendees is not a vulnerable population.
Despite the desire among residents to open the aquatic center, Granger said she has “grave concerns” about the ability to enforce guidelines.
“It’s not just about not having an optimal experience, but having an unpleasant experience,” she said, adding that staff has reviewed in detail countless options to “make this work.”
Carney asked if the pool could open and make the decision to close later, if operations were not going smoothly.
Cahall said doing so would be undesirable because it would require staff to hire between 30 and 40 aquatic center employees and lay them off soon after.
Council ultimately agreed to fill the pool and prepare it to open, but will not make a decision until next council meeting, June 8.
At Carney’s recommendation, staff is creating a survey for residents to gauge their feelings before deciding whether to open. It will likely be posted on the village’s website, but Cahall said staff will discuss options to distribute the survey.