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Highland Park pool committee reports $345,000 raised, seeks $2,000,000 for replacement options
Summary
At the Oct. 18 Guthrie City Council meeting, residents leading a Highland Park pool fundraising effort reported $345,000 in pledges and cash and said they aim to raise about $2,000,000 toward a preferred full-replacement option; staff cautioned the project costs are estimates until competitively bid and noted state code limitations for bathhouse design.
Residents and staff updated the Guthrie City Council on plans and fundraising for a replacement of the Highland Park pool on Oct. 18, 2025. Carol Side, speaking for the pool committee, said the group has raised $345,000 in legally binding pledges and cash and that the committee estimates it needs about $2,000,000 to reach the option they favor.
The committee presented four cost options during the meeting. Adam (staff) outlined numeric estimates as presented to the council (transcript lists the figures 4.65, 3.7, 4.3 and another reference shown as “236”); the transcript does not specify monetary units for those figures. "We need to raise about $2,000,000," Carol Side said, adding that local banks and community groups have contributed and that Neighborhood Solutions (a 501(c)(3)) is handling donations.
City staff cautioned that Crossland and GH2 prepared the figures as cost estimates only and that final costs will depend on competitive design and bidding. Eddie (staff) told the council that the state Department of Health code and the pool’s eventual occupant load will determine bathhouse fixture counts and some equipment choices in the pump/chemical house. "Until this is publicly bid, you don't know for sure that you can build for this," Eddie said.
Betty, a longtime Guthrie resident and former swim instructor, described the pool’s community role—swim lessons, Red Cross programming and service for children and seniors—and urged the council to plan for a facility at least as large as the current pool. She also suggested the city could use existing city funds to begin work on the bathhouse and pump house while fundraising continues; staff responded that proceeding without final design and funding is complicated by code and capacity uncertainties.
Council members and staff said they support the project in principle but emphasized the need for a funding and design plan before committing to construction. No formal action was taken on the item during the meeting.
Next steps identified in the meeting: continue fundraising, refine design options, and await a formal funding/design plan and public bidding process before construction commitments are made.
