Meeting first at the municipal swimming pool, then reassembling at the City Hall, the City of California Board of Aldermen heard the good news and the bad news concerning the condition of the pool.
An assessment of the swimming pool facility was presented by Mason Banks, employed as a consultant for the purpose of determining the cause of a large leak in the three-pool system.
According to Banks, a swimming pool builder and specialist, the good news is that the pool basin is not beyond repair and the building is in good condition. The pool basin is not cracked.
The rest of the news is not good.
Banks informed the council that there is only a short window of opportunity to address the problems, since stress will crack the pool basin if it is not repaired in two or three years.The only remedy then is to demolish it.
To fix the entire three-pool system, the estimated lowest cost was in the neighborhood of $800,000.
Taking the pools separately, the cost of fixing the indoor pool was estimated to be in the range of $400,000 to $500,000. Construction of a new outdoor diving pool was estimated to be about half that - $250,000 - only $50,000 more than repair of the 35 year old pool.
Banks said kiddie pools are not recommended because of the extreme water contamination problems. The cost of making the present one work properly is about the same as a new one, about $35,000 to $40,000.
For more of this story check out the Nov. 30 issue of the California Democrat.