Swimming With Alligators - The Community School Pool (7/19/2010)

I've been seeing a lot of revisionist history lately --- some folks are asking the same questions that were asked and answered many times previously. I want to make the record very clear -- but, rather than wasting more time, I am rerunning the below post which was made almost exactly two years ago -- in July of 2010!

It's ironic that we are having the exact same discussion two years later!

I am not a big fan of crowds or chlorine, but I do enjoy water. I’ve been know to splash around in a pool – although never in any strenuous, or organized fashion. I would much prefer to hang on the side, sip an adult beverage and contemplate humanity as we know it – and, of course, soak up a few rays.

This laid back outlook is a far cry from the position exhibited by the very vocal supporters of the Sandwich Community School Pool.

This conflict raised its ugly head when a review of the Community School financial statements showed that several operating expenses of the pool were actually being paid by the high school or other Community School programs -- hardly the end of the Earth, but not great business either. The responses I received from most “Pool People” were either (a) No, they’re not or (b) So, what if they are?

The problem was that nobody seemed to know exactly WHAT it cost to operate the pool. This is an important distinction because the revenue generated by the pool needs to be matched against the cost of operating the pool. The simple concept that I tried to sell was: “If the pool costs more than it collects, it is losing money”.

If the pool is losing money, it means somebody else is paying the bills – either the patrons of other Community School programs or, the taxpayers who are paying to operate the high school building. While this idea didn’t bother the Pool People – it did bother many taxpayers and many other Community School customers who were already paying their own bills, and didn’t feel like chipping in to subsidize the cost of somebody else’s dip in the pool.

I have no problem with the idea of a municipal pool operated in the same way as any other municipal service and paid for with a combination of user fees and tax dollars. BUT, I do have a problem when scarce educational dollars from a shrinking education budget are being diverted to the operation of a public swimming pool. I also have a problem when other program costs are inflated in order to help cover the cost of operating a swimming pool. If Town meeting voters or pool users are able to fund the pool – terrific! Just don’t fire a teacher, or eliminate a school program in order to fund it.

The realities are that the utility costs of the pool are estimated at around $45,000 per year and are paid for by the high school (three studies were done – two pegged the cost at approx $45K, the third said $120k – I will assume the $45K is a good number). There are also some additional janitorial and maintenance costs.

There is also certainly a security cost. Under the current scenario, pool patrons who walk in off the street share locker rooms with high school students during the day. Does anybody else see the irony in doing CORI checks on parents chaperoning field trips but allowing unidentified strangers to wander naked with the high school kids?

(Yes, there should also be a credit for the value of the pool time provided to the school swim teams.  But, that amount should also be reflected in the athletic budget and be reviewed for reasonableness as would any other team expense.)

In the past, certain pieces of pool equipment were leased and the related costs were considered “overhead” costs and allocated to all of the other Community School programs. The result was that the parents with kids in the pre-school program, or driver’s education were also paying for some of the pool equipment. After much discussion, this practice has been discontinued. (The concept of the unauthorized “leasing” of equipment will be discussed later).

The Pool People are a very dedicated group. They packed at least one school committee meeting last winter and made it very clear they expected the committee to continue to operate the pool. Many also made it very clear that they didn’t have kids in the school district and this was the only school function they were concerned about.

The Community School’s accounting process was flawed. ALL program costs need to be matched against the related revenue in order to determine if a program is covering its costs. If a program is losing money, the program needs to be discontinued, or the fees raised – unless the Community School were to receive a partial operating subsidy from Town Meeting as part of the (almost nonexistent) Recreation Department budget.

It also highlighted some seriously poor communication by all involved. In addition to poor accounting policy, there were delays in distributing financial information; there were also rumors and incorrect assumptions. And, of course, there were also a few folks who were only too willing to fan the flames of any potential school-related controversy.

Going forward, I hope the School Committee understands that while the community certainly supports the operation of the pool, given the state of the school budget, it also expects the pool to be fully self-funded – and not divert school budget dollars from any other program.