Will the Columbia Association follow through on its plan to create more indoor pool space to address that growing need? Last year, the answer seemed to be yes when the CA Board allotted funds for engineering studies as the first step in either enclosing an outdoor pool or building a new eight-lane indoor pool. This came after months of lobbying by the Clippers Swim Team parents, lap swimmers, and other aquatic enthusiasts.
Now, in a CA Aquatics Work session, it looks like that first-step money will not be spent and the entire plan for a new indoor pool, cost approximately $8 million, will be taken off the table, if Executive Director Matthews' recommendations are followed.
What happened? A recent study of the structural viability of the aging swim center revealed that it will cost $8 million over the next five years to keep that facility in good shape. CA appears to now be pursuing, as an alternative, a possible partnership with Howard County to discuss building a larger competition-size pool instead, which would cost upwards of $20 million.
While everyone agrees this would be a terrific facility to have, we are concerned that this long shot of major financial commitment from the county may never materialize and that the earlier plan to increase indoor pool space will be lost in the shuffle of other competing requests for other capital funds.
CA dues payers who are aquatics enthusiasts will need to monitor closely this detour from the Aquatics Master Plan, and must express their desires to their CA reps loudly and often right now. Otherwise, there will be no chance of getting back on track for that eight-lane pool we desperately need when (and if) the county fails to commit. The high cost of keeping the swim center viable should be all the more reason for moving ahead with plans for a new indoor pool, not an excuse for putting it off.
Roslyn Zinner
Columbia