HomeMy WebLinkAbout112023 email Comment of Aquatic Center ProposalALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
Dear Jefferson County Board of Commissioners,
I am writing to the Board to encourage Commissioners to consider objectively the proposed aquatic center project and to vote NO, to vote against the proposal. This may seem surprising
as I am an 18 year resident of Port Townsend, I am an avid swimmer and I am a parent to a competitive swimming teenager. Tragically, my experience in using Mountain View since the pandemic
is that the pool remains underutilized and its program offerings remain a mere fraction of the pre-pandemic offerings; particularly the program offerings for children and youth. A community
asset such as an aquatic center can only be of value if it's managed well and offers excellent programming. If it were the case that the pool offered excellent comprehensive programming
to the community, and was straining at capacity, only then would there be a compelling case to invest in an upgraded facility. Regrettably, this is not the case and thus I think one
must conclude that the proposal before the Board does not warrant the County's investment and support.
When my son was 5 I began taking him to Mountain View pool for the "Group 1" swim lessons. I don't remember if these lessons were twice or three times a week, but sessions ran for 8
weeks and then would begin again; swim lessons were continually offered year around. I remember so fondly sitting on the poolside benches with twenty or so other parents, who had kids
in Group 1 lessons, or the slightly more advanced Group 2 lessons. This was a tremendously valuable community asset and resource for parents, and it provided a critically important
life skill to young children, learning how to swim. These programs regularly filled to capacity, so one had to be organized and prompt to sign up for the next session! My son was basically
in Mountain View swim lessons all the time from when he was 5 until 10, he progressed Group 1 to 2, then to group 3 and group 4. After that he was able to join the RedFins competitive
club swim team. He swam with the Redfins for a month or so until the pandemic struck and everything stopped.
It's nearly 4 years since that pandemic closure and still no youth swim lessons are offered.
It's nearly 4 years since the pandemic closure and still the pool does not offer a club swim team.
(note - Port Townsend HS only offers Girls Swimming in Autumn, so Mountain View's Redfins was especially important for boys)
By the way, teenage lifeguards have always mostly come from youth on swim teams, so not having a swim team, disenfranchising youth, just exacerbates Mountain View's staffing problems.
Even after the pandemic emergency closures, when the pool opened it had limited hours and resources. The YMCA decided to deploy those limited resources in such a way as to exclude school
age children and working adults, to disenfranchise them. For a year the pool would close at 3pm, just as school let out and before most working adults left their jobs. This was an unconscionable
management choice and I think shows the YMCA is unfit to manage this community resource.
So, I don't see Mountain View as an old swimming pool that's holding the community back, I see a mismanaged pool that isn't as used as much as it used to be. As much as I personally
might enjoy a newer pool, such a large investment doesn't make sense in the absence of quality programming and strained capacity. I truly wish our pool served all our community members,
was bursting at capacity with usage, and the investment was then truly required.
Yours sincerely,
Jason Temple
Port Townsend, WA
Jason Temple
President and Master Stove Builder
TempleFire, Inc.
P.O. Box 2085 Port Townsend, WA 98368 USA
+1-360-379-2877
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