Ringgold plans pool maintenance work during the winter off-season
The city of Ringgold is planning to resurface its pool over the next few months in order to offer a nicer swimming experience to the public moving forward.
After shutting down after Labor Day, the pool will be closed until Memorial Day, which gives the city a significant window of time for renovations.
“It’s a 1964 model pool,” City Manager Dan Wright told the council on Sept. 24. “We’ve made a few improvements over the years such as the pump, filter, and the lighting on the exterior of the pool. But as we look at preparing for 2019, the pool needs to be resurfaced.”
Wright says attendance at the pool was great this year and thinks improvements will only help its popularity in the future.
“The revenue through August was $46,855.55, and expenses were $49,424.66,” Wright said. “To be able to provide recreation at that level for about $2,600 is pretty amazing.”
Wright said staff dedication is a big part of what makes the city pool successful.
“Congrats to Stephen Middlebrooks, our parks and recreation director, as well as Pam Green who manages the pool. I think they take a lot of pride in seeing that pool continue to work.”
As for the resurfacing, Wright said the pool would need to be pressurewashed, have some cracks sealed, and then the plan is to add an epoxy finish.
“The estimated cost for doing such is probably $80,000 to $120,000,” Wright said. “While we’re redoing some of that, we’d like to go ahead and replumb as much as possible around the exterior sides.
“We’d like to get bid specifications together so that we can have it completed no later than April. That would give us a month if there was an issue before the pool would open in 2019.”
Although it sounds a little pricey, Mayor Nick Millwood looks at it as a major investment in a city asset.
“We’re talking about a 25-year finish on that pool, so we’re talking about something that into the future will give us stability there,” Millwood said. “It’s certainly a prudent way to move.”
As far as the potential cost goes, Wright said that springing for the improvements now might save money on regular upkeep in the long run.
“Some people may not realize it, but currently, we’re painting that pool every year,” Wright said. “The paint just for that pool is in excess of $1,000 per year, and then you have to pressurewash it and do those type of things, so the labor alone is going to be several thousand dollars (each year). So if you spend $100,000 and divide it by 25, we probably spend more than that getting that pool surface ready every year — let alone, if we have to re-tile any sections of it.”
Ultimately, the council unanimously approved moving forward with devising a resurfacing and replumbing plan for the pool in the $80,000-$120,000 price range.
Fort Oglethorpe officials have approved the purchase of new hoses for its fire department, as well as necessary chemicals for pump station treatment in its public utilities department.
On Sept. 24, both Fire Chief Bruce Ballew and Public Utilities Director Phil Parker brought purchase proposals to the City Council for the necessary items that will cost just under $20,000.
“We’re looking to purchase 2,850 feet of various sizes of fire hose to replenish the fire hose that we have lost in the past year and are past the age of being recommended for use by the NFPA,” Ballew said. “The cost will be $10,419.72, and we recommend the purchase from MES.”
As far as the chemicals for Parker’s department, the purchase is to treat ongoing manhole issues near a pump station.
“This is a request to purchase the chemical treatment that we use at the Ann Drive pump station to control hydrogen sulfide,” Parker said. “We were here in May and we filled the tank up. This round, if we fill the tank up again, should get us through the end of the year.”
When the issue was first addressed in May, Parker explained that the hydrogen sulfide is generated through wastewater at the pump station.
“The purchase will be from Evoqua Chemical Co. in the amount of $9,500,” Parker said.
The City Council unanimously approved both purchases.
As part of the city’s ongoing Geographic Information System ( GIS) project, Parker says that the same chemical treatment process could be added to other pump stations in the future.