Pool opening delayed

Much to the dismay of city council member Joe Arterburn, Sidney’s public swimming pool will not open until the first week of June.

Crews have been busy preparing the facility but, according to Public Services Director John Hehnke, weather—including the snow storms of April and May—played havoc with the schedule.

Memorial Day is often considered the target date for community pool openings. Hehnke explained for paint to adhere and patchwork be completed, temperatures must reach a certain level.

“We just missed three prime weeks,” Arterburn pointed out. “We do it every year. For some reason we can’t get the maintenance done; we always get well into June until we open the pool.”

“We only do what Mother Nature allows us,” Hehnke said in response.

Some have the impression that annual work on the facility pushes the opening back progressively.

“I am very, very, very disappointed that year after year after year we continue to kick it out; it seems like we open the pool later every year,” Arterburn observed. “You can do maintenance work, you can patch concrete early in the spring. We don’t have to wait until May to do it. I mean it seems we have to jump on that earlier.”

At issue is the predictable unpredictability of Nebraska’s transition from winter to spring to summer.

“I just find it that every year we have the same issue,” Arterburn said. “The weather’s the same in the spring. We’ve got to figure a way to work around it. We can’t, if we’re going to open a new pool, we’ve got to figure out how to make money in those pools.

The fact that we don’t get them open when they should be and we don’t keep them open we’re missing a big opportunity.”

But the facility faces not only annual repair and refurbishment issues, but also must find employees from high school and college students on summer break. These men and women return to Sidney at different times and must complete training.

“College kids are all out,” Arterburn pointed out. “Finals week wrapped up last week.”

“That still doesn’t put us with enough lifeguards on duty to open the pool,” Hehnke replied.

Arterburn broached the possibility of hiring temporary staff to fill the gap.

“I think that one of the problems that we will find moving forward with the swimming pool project is staffing it year-round is going to be an issue,” Hehnke said.

Arterburn interjected “I just find it unacceptable.”

Hehnke said, “We work as hard as we can to get the pool open as quickly as we can.”