As Iolans splash away summer’s sweaty days in their new pool they can feel superior to New Yorkers and the residents of Sacramento, Calif. Swimming pools in those cities and elsewhere across the country have been shut down because, officials protest, they cost too much to operate in tough times like these.
This discovery was made by the Associated Press working with managing editors across the country in an effort to see how state and local governments are coping with the continuing recession.
This particular story was datelined Anderson, S.C., because that southern city gets hot early in the spring and stays hot late in the fall. Public swimming pools provide relief from the muggy heat — particularly for those who can’t afford fitness centers and don’t live in upscale neighborhoods where backyard pools are common.
Anderson has closed two pools to the public. Reporters found that four public pools within 20 miles of the city have been closed.
Another report focused on Grand Traverse County in Michigan. The only public pool for the county’s 87,000 residents lost $244,000 last year. Enough, a county commissioner said, to put three sheriff’s deputies out on patrol. The county faces a $1 million deficit and the commissioners wonder if keeping the pool open, running at a loss, would show a proper sense of proportion if other services are being eliminated.
In Sacramento, which lies in California’s central desert, where there were 13 public pools a decade ago, there are now only three public pools for the city’s 465,000 residents.
Kids — particularly poor kids — suffer most. Dave Mitchell, operations manager for Sacramento’s Department of Parks and Recreation, said “pools are just a safe place to be and be kids, to enjoy summer, to enjoy being with other kids. These opportunities aren’t going to be there for the youth (when the pools close) and it’s just crushing.”
THERE ARE SEVERAL explanations for the budget crunch that seems to have crippled cities nationwide. When the recession hit in 2008, the federal government responded with Keynesian tactics. It pumped billions into state and city coffers to make up for the sudden drop in state and local tax revenues. Those stimulus funds are gone now and won’t be replaced. But state and local tax revenues, while increasing, aren’t back up to pre-slump levels.
This double whammy hit hard. States like Kansas had enough revenues just a few years ago to keep their budgets well in the black with enough left over to share with cities and counties. The booming 1990s also gave them room to reduce taxes — which Kansas lawmakers did in righteous glee.
At the same time that revenues fell, expenses rose. It costs more to operate a swimming pool today than it did a decade ago because electricity costs more to produce. Swimming pool costs and fuel costs track each other closely. Labor costs are also higher because operating regulations require more employees.
Swimming pools in every city have seen revenues drop because of the prosperity factor. Fifty years ago the Iola swimming pool made a respectable profit. It was the primary recreation center for Iola’s kids every summer for 20 or 30 years. Many families bought season tickets and used them.
That was before backyard pools and before a great many Iolans had the means to make weekend visits to lakes and other exciting recreation spots. As America got richer, the alternatives to municipal swimming pools proliferated. Perhaps that is the main reason why the swimming pool in Grand Traverse County loses so much money every year — not because the people there can’t afford the tickets, but because there are so many other things to do.
But, Mr. Mitchell is right. Summer, swimming and kids go together. Iola is lucky to have its pool. Iola’s city fathers should keep it a high summer priority.
— Emerson Lynn, jr.
