Voters in Washtucna need to support pool levy

So the fall is upon us and winter is around the corner. Not long from now, in fact before you know it, it’ll be spring again. Your children will be daydreaming of summer and making all kinds of plan. What will I do this summer? No homework! Yippee! Then the thought of having “nothing to do” sends us into all kinds of cataclysmic scenarios wondering what our kids are going to do during summer break.

Thank goodness our town has a swimming pool! What a cool respite on a hot summer day. We are so lucky to have this oasis in our community. We know that when one o’clock rolls around that the fun will begin.

We are so very blessed to have a wonderful community that has always supported our kids in whatever they do. Now more than ever we need your continued support to ensure that our pool can open for next season. Besides having a cool place to go and relax and cool off, our pool offers swimming lessons, aerobics, night swim and occasional mid-night swims. The tradition remains the same; year after year, grandchildren, and nieces and nephews can’t wait to come to Washtucna for swimming lessons and VBS for their summer vacation. For these few short weeks our community grows in love and laughter as we watch our children learn how to swim and learn about God’s love.

So right about now some of you might be wondering “How much does it take to operate this pool?” Here is a breakdown of our seasonal expenses and what we receive in property taxes to operate.

Even if we raised our rates, we still couldn’t pay our bills. We need your tax dollars to operate. Otherwise, we’ll be forced to close our doors for this next season.

Seasonal expenses include: Garbage, sewer and water, $945; Electricity, $1,620; Propane and tank rental, $964; Pool maintenance, $4,569; Health permit $300; CRP wages, $120; Insurance, $3,338; Phone, $371; Wages, $14,794; County loan payment (total owing $33,030) $2,400; Election cost, $1,054; Swimming lesson wages, $400; Total Expenses equaling $30,875.

There is also a new state regulation that will force all swimming pool facilities to purchase a handicap lift. This includes all public pools, motels and hotels. $5,000 is the approximate price for the one we are looking at purchasing. We will be looking into money-making projects for that purchase along with any pool funds that we have available.

Revenue: Year-to-date Property Taxes received so far: $26,927. Levy Budget is for $45,000.

This last season we received $2,587 in daily swimming fees and passes, 25 children took swimming lessons and we have up to five people taking aerobics. Our average daily swimming head count is 25. The swimming pool is a vital part of our community and we’d greatly appreciate your continued support.

Thanks for listening,

Karyn Allen, Park and Rec Dist #2 Commissioner