Pool Projects

On March 11, the Town approved a contract with Barker, Rinker, Seacat Architecture (BRS) for public engagement on improvements to the North and South Pools, the design of the North Pool renovation, and an assessment of the South Pool. This contract was made possible thanks to Superior voters who approved a .315% sales tax increase that would fund projects like renovating town pools, playgrounds, parks, and roads.

The North Pool was constructed over 30 years ago and it’s served our community well. Over the past 3 decades, however, we have had to replace and repair mechanical and sanitation systems, address various safety standards and ADA compliance, and replace pool furniture and other equipment. The pool has had increasing amounts of downtime in recent years — most recently, last summer when a hole emerged in the middle of the lap lanes — and it needs work.

Staff and consultants recommend renovating the North Pool to address operation and safety needs, including mechanical and sanitation systems upgrades. While conducting this renovation, there are opportunities to update restrooms, showers, kitchen, storage, and guard areas, while also adding potential play amenities such as: climbing walls, zip lines, spray and splash features. There has also been interest from residents in exploring an extended pool season at the North Pool with spring and fall dates or even year-round operations.

Pool projects are extremely expensive and preliminary mock-ups of various potential options that we’ve seen have ranged from $3.4M on the low-end, to as much as $13.4M on the high-end.  Click here to see some preliminary mock-ups (and a description of the work that would be performed for each) that we looked at last year.

Last fall, we preliminarily budgeted $5M for the North Pool project, with funds coming from the bond proceeds from the sales tax ballot measure that passed in November. We have not yet gone to the bond market (which should happen later this summer) and therefore, don’t yet know how much in total we will receive once we do. We anticipate anywhere between $15M-$20M in bond proceeds will be available. Obviously, we want to get this project right and accordingly, we have instructed staff and our consultant that we’d be flexible with the budget to make sure the North Pool project meets the expectations of the community.

But before we spend millions of taxpayer dollars, we also want to solicit input from residents and pool user-groups to weigh-in on the design and the scope of renovations to the North Pool. BRS will be conducting a public open-house session (tentatively scheduled for April 16) and will meet with swim team and swim lesson providers, to help them come up with the best design possible for the North Pool. As they engage with the community on the North Pool, they will also seek input on the South Pool as well.

BRS will be conducting the public engagement in April and will be finalizing their design by July. The Town Council should consider the construction contract this summer, with construction occurring between August 2025 and May 2026, which will allow the North Pool to open on time for the Summer 2026 season. Later this year and into 2026, we’ll get to work on the design for South Pool renovations.

This is an exciting time for Superior and I’m really grateful for the voters who passed the sales tax which is helping us fund these critically important projects for our Town. Stay tuned for additional information from the Town and be sure to attend the public engagement meetings for the design of the North and South Pools this April.

Want to learn more about important topics in Superior? Check out my recent blog post about the Town’s new trash contract. https://marklacis.com/2025/03/superiors-new-waste-contract/