The Pueblo West Metropolitan District Board of Directors discussed potential locations, phasing and funding for a proposed indoor aquatic center and received an update on repairs needed at the district’s outdoor pool.

The board heard that a full indoor facility design runs about 17,514 square feet and that a single-phase lap-pool build would require roughly 3.5 acres of site area. Design-phase cost estimates presented in 2024 put a phased first build at about $8–9 million; phased construction costs will change with final design and bids. Carol Cosby, director of parks and recreation, told the board the facility plan includes a six-lane lap pool, a leisure pool with a lazy river and play features, a diving area, spectator seating and rentable party rooms intended to generate operating revenue.

Board members were asked to identify two preferred sites for follow-up studies. Cosby presented five potential sites the district owns or controls — Spalding, Civic Center, John Powell, Soaring Eagles and a Watusi/Industrial-area parcel — and summarized access, acreage and preliminary soil considerations for each. Christian J. Hynd, district manager, and Shawn Winters, director of operational support, described a soils-screening review that used Natural Resources Conservation Service maps and noted that some sites (notably Spalding and portions of John Powell and Soaring Eagles) have shallow or very shallow bedrock that can raise excavation and foundation costs. Hynd said more precise geotechnical borings would be needed after the board narrows site choices.

Finance director Karen Cordova told the board that, as of the packet, the district had roughly $10.2 million in capital-project funds, of which about $3.2 million had been earmarked for an administration building; that leaves approximately $7 million available for the aquatic center program. Chief Operating Officer Bridal Hagen also told the board, “We have approximately $7,000,000 available in funding for the aquatic center.” Cordova and Hagen cautioned that future revenue (TABOR excess and marijuana excise transfers referenced in board materials) is variable and that ongoing operating subsidies may be required; staff estimated an annual operating subsidy in the range of $400,000 on current models.

Board members pressed staff on soil risk, roadway and sewer extensions and how construction of a pool at each site might trigger subdivision-improvement requirements. Shawn Winters advised that some sites would likely require traffic studies and road improvements by Pueblo County. Cosby said a phased approach could reduce initial cost: a phase focused on the indoor lap pool and core mechanical spaces, with later additions for leisure features.

On the existing outdoor pool at Civic Center Park, Cosby reported that contractors had inspected the system and found return lines intact but identified a crushed line outside the pool and a pressurization failure of the main drains in the deep end. She said the pool’s liner is past useful life and that the facility has had multiple patches; the pool was originally built in 1972. Cosby said the district had not yet received the final inspection report and that, because of the time needed for repairs and the pool season timeline, reopening this summer was unlikely. She summarized: “There is a crushed line ... until that’s fixed, they would have to come back out and try to pressurize the lines in the deep end.”

The board did not pick a final site but asked staff to return to the next work session with two ranked site options and recommended next steps, including targeted soil borings and traffic/sewer scoping. Cordova said final decisions about relying on TABOR-related revenue and other capital priorities should inform any timeline for breaking ground.