Council debates converting historic Willoughby pool house into public restroom

Councilmembers debated whether to convert a small historic pool house in Willoughby Park into a public restroom or retain it as a low-cost shed at the May 5 work session.

Parks Director Matt described the pool house as about 375 square feet and said architects' rough estimates placed the renovation footprint at 800'1,200 square feet, producing a high-end construction estimate "at 600,000 plus" when adjusting for annual escalation. "From a labor perspective, we're looking at somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 to $25,000 annually for staff labor associated with this restroom specifically," he said.

Councilmember Bill argued the renovation is likely underbudgeted, telling staff "there is no way this is $800 to $1,200 a square foot" and saying the true cost could be "at least twice that." Bill proposed using the adjacent ticket-office restrooms or negotiating maintenance arrangements with Ski Co rather than undertaking an expensive retrofit. Other councilmembers, including Councilmember 4 and Sam, said they preferred restroom conversion, citing likely heavy summertime and winter use and the benefit to park activation.

Staff said the pool house conversion is discretionary, that turning it into a shed could save "five to $600,000 in fund savings," and that any decision could be refined during the upcoming budget cycle. Council did not take a roll-call vote on the pool house but discussed funding trade-offs and asked staff to return with more precise cost estimates and options for shared maintenance agreements.