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Gunnison staff warn of escalating pool maintenance costs; short-term patch vs. full roof/heating replacement debated
Summary
Pool staff reported repeated failures of HVAC/heating elements and rising maintenance costs; staff proposed short-term repairs (≈$9,000) and to solicit bids for full replacements (≈$45,000 per unit), while discussing more expensive bubble-cover options.
Jeremy, identified in the meeting as pool staff, briefed the council on pool operations, staffing and facilities. He said the pool has had a run of equipment failures dating from boilers to a roof-top heater and requested additional line items for special programming. "We have 1 heating element on the South side and 1 on the North side...to replace the heating system, it's $45,000," he said, and added that a temporary repair to get the heating system running could be about $9,000.
Council members discussed options including patching, phased replacement and installing a seasonal "bubble" cover for winter use. Jeremy said previous estimates for a bubble and related work were high (he described figures in the low-to-mid hundreds of thousands when discussing bubble and major roof options), and he agreed to solicit updated bids and follow up with written estimates. The pool currently operates in a way that keeps the facility warm and humid for morning users but has faced criticism from some lap swimmers; staff said the patch approach will buy time to evaluate long-term options.
Staff also reported revenue pressures: daily swim fees are coming in lower than expected and some unanticipated maintenance costs increased pool expenditures. The city had set aside $200,000 for a roof reserve; staff described reallocating some of that to cover urgent maintenance needs but flagged this as a budget pressure that informed the proposed midyear amendment.
