Guest column: Pools offer lifelong activity

It is with absolute disbelief that I face the prospect that this Friday will be my last swim in Comstock pool. Having read that the pool is “old” and considered an outdated form of recreation, I continued to visit and swim throughout this summer, often sharing the pool with so many neighbors that I felt the pool was crowded but also alive, with parents, children, laughter and fun.

After trips to various U.S. cities, where my family always seeks out city parks and pools, we invariably return to Spokane feeling we are lucky, realizing that few cities have parks to rival ours, one of which is Comstock Park and its swimming pool.

Pools are not outdated fun. How many families who are lucky enough to travel pay a bit extra to include a pool (usually mini-sized) at their hotel? Granted, splash pads are fun, being an older-age version lawn sprinklers. Water slides are exciting but don’t teach kids how to swim. But the lifelong set of skills learned in a neighborhood swimming pool (swimming, diving and water safety lessons) prepare kids for years of extended fun, exercise and safety so they can also swim in the deep and in the water slide pools, as well as play in lakes, rivers and oceans.

Spokane sells itself as being surrounded by lakes. The lure of lakes without a history of swimming lessons equals drownings, or at the least a significant loss of traditional fun. It is hard to conceive of a Spokane teenager who is not drawn to a local lake or river during this hot summer to fish, inner tube, swim or cliff dive. Many Spokane adults aspire to opportunities to boat, water-ski, snorkel or dive. All these require lessons learned at neighborhood pools.

I propose that Spokane and the Spokane Parks Department commit to refurbishing Comstock pool, rebuilding Shadle indoor and outdoor pools, building a second indoor pool (to facilitate winter swimming lessons, adult water exercise programs, scuba training, etc.) and building other pools in the city’s pool-less neighborhoods. Anywhere there is a neighborhood high school, that neighborhood needs a pool. Add newer components (slides and fountains) to swimmable pools. Make the pools community drawing cards for all ages.

The loss of the water programs for adults at the now-closed YWCA pool left a hole for them (especially seniors) that has not been filled. The loss of our many almost-century-old wading pools in parks was a hard blow for families with toddlers and preschoolers who learned basic water exposure while playing in these pools.

Now Comstock, the only pool in the south end of town, bites the dust.

We can afford both outdoor and indoor swimming pools if we prioritize and if we understand that swimming is both a safety issue and a fun, lifelong skill that is the basis of many other sports. Come on, Spokane, let’s get in the swim.