Lawton’s wading pools, splash pads will be ready by summer, but questions remain about municipal pool

City staff anticipates having Lawton’s wading pools and spray parks ready for action by Memorial Day, but the future is less certain for the municipal pool.

Ward 2 Councilman Kelly Harris said his plan is to have some aquatic recreation features available to city youths this summer while also directing city staff to move forward with plans to build three more spray parks (a project the council has discussed as part of the 2019 Capital Improvements Program). But he and other city officials say the amount of work needed to get the municipal pool fully operational means the city should look at other options —including building a new pool.

The directives came Tuesday during a report from the Parks and Recreation Department on the Elmer Thomas Park and Clement Washington spray parks; wading pools in 35th Division, Mocine and Harmon parks; and the municipal pool adjacent to Mattie Beal Park. Damage and maintenance requirements vary at each location, but analysis indicates work at the wading pools and spray parks would total about $22,000 and could be accomplished in three months. With a prompt beginning, that means they can be done by May, and the council’s directive specified the existing recreation areas would be open by Memorial Day or city staff is to report why.

The problem with the municipal pool is more complex because of the amount of visible damage, the potential of undiscovered damage and the cost. While the work needed on the wading pools and spray parks can be funded from Parks and Recreation’s maintenance budget, there isn’t funding for the more than $100,000 in identified work at the pool, a figure that could increase if additional damage is found.

Parks and Recreation Deputy Director Mitch Dooley said pressure testing uncovered multiple issues, including a “significant leak” on the return lines on the deep end of the pool. They are problems that must be addressed, he said, adding testing also confirmed the pool’s filter pump is past its life expectancy and there is a 3-inch difference in height between the deep and shallow ends.

“We can’t put bandages on it,” Dooley said, adding if the council wants the municipal pool to open this summer, his recommendation is to contract with Westmoreland Pools to repair the main drain and return lines, $114,115 worth of work.

Dooley said the city also could do lesser work and gamble additional damage won’t be discovered during repairs. The city also has the option of building a new, but smaller pool, at an estimated cost of $1 million, but that would mean doing without a municipal pool for at least two years, as well as finding the money to build it.

Dooley also said city staff doesn’t know how long repairs will take, explaining that depends on how much the ground around the pool shifts after re-plumbing is done. City officials have other concerns: many say a void exists under the pool or its apron, caused when water leaking from pipes washed away soil. Harris said that issue worries him, explaining that even if upgrades were made, there is no guarantee a sink hole wouldn’t cause more damage.

But Ward 5 Councilman Allan Hampton said the pool is important to nearby residents. He said there also is the possibility of receiving grant funds for repairs from the State Historical Preservation Office (SHPO) because the pool can be connected historically to Civil Rights issues in Lawton.

“There are citizens out there who tell me they go (to the pool),” Hampton said of his interest in keeping the facility open, adding grants could help the city cover repair costs. “The city has to take responsibility and quit tearing those historical structures down.”

Ward 8 Councilman Randy Warren said the city may be at the point it is more feasible to build a new pool rather than continue to put money in the existing one.

“We need to move the pool, somewhere other than Elmer Thomas Park,” he said, of the council’s desire to investigate the idea of a new pool and potential sites for it.