Park advocate says she was excluded from pool discussion; council hears need for engineering study

Buffy Allred, a community member involved in park and pool issues, told the council she was not given the opportunity to attend an earlier meeting between the mayor, council members and Fort Robinson staff and raised concerns that prior emails reporting pool leaks were not forwarded to responsible staff. Park Board Chairman Scott DeBock thanked volunteers who helped with Peabody Hale Park clean-up and said money set aside for the pool should remain dedicated to that purpose.

Council discussion focused on the need to determine the extent of pool damage before spending funds. Councilman Robert Tovmassian noted that, under the proposed budget, the pool repair was a capital improvement and statutorily would require an engineering study; because a study was not pursued earlier, any study done now might take longer than the current swimming season. Mayor Tom Phillips and the city attorney suggested holding a town hall or a special meeting to allow broader public discussion and to consider next steps.

Allred described practical repair ideas she had discussed with a pool business owner, including accessing the concrete that may encase piping to the guttering system, and offered to help the city with research, grant writing and soliciting donations. The council did not take formal action on pool wages, severance or lowering pool pass rates; those items remain on future agendas.

Next steps: Council agreed the city needs to better assess what is actually wrong with the pool before committing funds; a public meeting or town hall was proposed to collect input and determine whether an engineering study or other remedies should be pursued.