Residents want pool in Shadle

A new swimming pool in the northwest Spokane probably should be placed on the west side of Shadle Park, residents said Tuesday.

Those who attended a pool planning meeting Tuesday showed a preference for Shadle Park over Albi Stadium or Loma Vista Park, said Rob Crow, a member of a citizen advisory committee on new pools.

“I would say the outcome of the meeting was to locate it there,” Crow said.

Voters last fall approved a $42.9 million bond issue to replace the city’s existing five outdoor pools and build a new pool in Northwest Spokane to replace the former Shadle pools. In addition, 10 new “splash pad” play features are planned. The bond also will pay for a complex of fields, a skateboard park, bike course, trails and other improvements at Albi.

Neighbors to Loma Vista Park turned out to argue against locating a pool there.

The Albi Stadium grounds have problems with parking, traffic and site development, Crow said.

At other neighborhoods, Hillyard residents have backed a proposal to move Hillyard Pool to Harmon Park a few blocks to the north of the existing pool, which borders the heavily traveled Haven Street adjacent to Market Street.

Spokane parks officials are giving up on a proposal to complete a splash pad water play feature at Manito Park this year, but hope to get the project built in 2009. Problems with subsurface rock slowed a consultant effort to find a good location at Manito for the play feature.

Work on five other splash pads is expected this year, and they are slated for Thornton Murphy, Coeur d’Alene, Chief Garry, Friendship and Audubon parks. Parks officials and their consultants are shooting for opening them at mid-summer.

The bond issue calls for five additional splash pads at other parks in 2009, including Manito.

In other developments, parks officials this week were going to return to the Comstock Neighborhood with a plan to keep the existing Comstock bath house and replace it with a 25-yard wide pool that would allow lap swimming, but would also have a beach-like entry on the east end closest to the bath house, said Carl Strong, aquatics supervisor for the city.

Residents in the Comstock area have argued in favor of keeping the historic-looking bath house and the existing pool configuration.

Through consultants, the city has learned that it can save money on pool construction by rehabilitating bath houses at Comstock, Liberty and Cannon pools rather than completely replacing them.

“That money can go into pool features,” said Nancy Goodspeed, parks spokeswoman.

A series of neighborhood meetings was being held this week with the last two scheduled for tonight on Cannon Pool at the West Central Community Center, 1603 N. Belt St., and Liberty Pool at the East Central Community Center, 500 S. Stone St. Both meetings are from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Other meetings were held Tuesday and Wednesday for a new pool in Northwest Spokane to replace the former pools at Shadle Park and Witter, Hillyard and Comstock pools.

Normally, Witter Pool is kept open in September for lap swimming and other activities, but Witter is being closed at the end of August to allow for construction of a new pool to begin as soon as possible.

The city wants to have each of its pools completed for the 2009 season.