Eugene (KMTR) – The Sheldon public pool will close its doors this summer to fix an expensive leak. City officials discovered rusty pipes losing water under the pool about six months ago, leaking thousands of gallons of water, and costing about $40 per day. Next month, the Sheldon pool will close its doors until October for repairs.
The start of summer might not seem like an ideal time for a pool closure, but city staffers say it's actually more convenient than other seasons. The Amazon pool opens for the summer months’ Sheldon pool patrons can swim there, or at Echo Hollow. Project coordinators are working to make sure the public won't miss out on any services during the repairs. Aquatic Section Manager Rich Fay said, "We're offering the fitness classes and swim lessons at the other pools, both at Amazon and Echo. Additionally we're going to move our fitness center upstairs with the treadmills and the weights over to the gymnasium at Sheldon Community Center."
All of Sheldon pool’s staff will keep their jobs during the closure, filling in the gaps at the other two pools. Doors will shut June 18th, and Sheldon will reopen October 15th.
The repairs will cost between $1 million and $1.25 million. That money comes out of the city's capital projects fund, set aside for situations like this. New piping should extend the pools life by about ten years.
