The Orange Natatorium is out-dated and may need to be demolished, but the city of Orange could build a $1 million water park on the site.
City Manager Dr. Shawn Oubre gave a brief run-down about the natatorium at a city council meeting in February after asked about whether the city is lining up lifeguards for the summer.
He said the last couple of years the city raised the pay of lifeguards to hire them, but the woman who has worked as pool manager is not coming back this year. He said cities all over the state, including Austin, have had problems operating pools and getting lifeguards.
Plus, the 40-year-old covered pool has leaks, he said.
The natatorium was designed for year-long pool use. Through the years, the insulation was removed because of problems and some 25 years ago the city closed it during the months the heater would be used. In the past few years, the city has had problems hiring a staff to open the pool during summer months.
The natatorium and a water park are sure to come up on Tuesday when the city council holds a public workshop to discuss “quality of life” and capital expenditures in the future. The meeting will be at 9 a.m. in the Ira Williamson Meeting Room inside the Orange Public Library.
The council will look at long-term projects and will have the money to invest in the city because old bonds, or municipal loans, will be paid off.
Oubre has previously said in 2019 the bonds used to build the police station and the fire station on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive will be paid off. The city has budgeted $490,000 a year to pay off those bonds.
Old calculations show the city could sell $5 million in bonds with a pay-off time of 10 years for the same $490,000 a year. Or, the city could sell $20 million in bonds to pay off for 20 years. Oubre said the city has a good bond rating, which leads to lower interest rates.
In previous workshops, council members have also talked about building a covered pavilion at the Boat Ramp that could be used during fishing tournaments and other activities. The discussions have included softball and baseball fields.
-Margaret Toal, KOGT-
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