Burlingame pool rebuild moves ahead

The deal still must be ratified by the Burlingame City Council, as the district facility is primarily used by the Burlingame community when not occupied by classes or student athletes.

Deputy Superintendent Liz McManus lauded the deal moving ahead, as officials are hopeful to get the pool back up and running, following a decision by school officials to completely rebuild it.

“It’s really exciting,” she said. “And we really appreciate all the patience the community has had.”

School officials shouldered the upfront costs associated with getting the roughly $6.6 million project started, in an effort to get plans approved and move toward construction as soon as possible. City officials are required to pay $2.7 million, with an initial payment of $1.2 million.

The pool has been closed since last summer when maintenance workers discovered structural flaws so severe that officials elected to rebuild the center rather than attempt to temporarily fix it.

Though some in the swim community opposed the decision at the time, McManus said discoveries during construction have proven the entire rebuild to be the correct choice.

Most notably, she said one corner of the pool was found to be severely damaged and the surrounding wall likely would not have lasted another five years had officials only mended some of the existing issues. She also noted the previous pool was found to be not to be a full 50 meters, an issue which will be corrected with the new facility.

McManus said construction on the project is progressing as expected, and officials are optimistic notable advances will be seen in the coming months.

“In the next 60 to 90 days, the pool will start taking shape and people will start getting excited,” she said.

In all, she anticipates the project could be completed around the end of the year, so long as the weather cooperates.

She said officials from the school district, city of Burlingame and Burlingame Aquatic Center have examined progress and discussed designs and construction in an effort to make the project as collaborative as possible.

The rebuild project is remaining on budget as well, said McManus.

Once operational, the school district and city will split evenly the maintenance and operations expenses. Following the first year of use, city and school officials will reconsider cost sharing expenses to determine a reasonable formula for addressing such costs in the future. Under a previous agreement, the city was paying 78% of the operational and maintenance costs.

Officials also intend to extend the terms of the agreement from 2026 to 2040. By 2035, either party may seek to leave the agreement, at which point they would need to reimburse the partner agency for remaining costs.

The pool’s closure posed significant difficulties for the many swim clubs and teams which depend on access to the facility, officials have said. But with construction moving ahead and hope building for it to reopen in the near future, McManus said officials are preparing to again serve the broader Peninsula swimming community.

“Everyone has really had to hold on and be patient and it hasn’t been easy for all these people,” she said. “So it is really exciting the new pool is in play.”

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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