Emery County Aquatics Center awaits the first plunge

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

Well, it’s not time to take the plunge just yet, but the Emery County Aquatics Center is nearing completion. The project has been several years in the making with the funding process taking a couple of years and now the building process is closing in on 18 months. The pool is still projected to make a fall opening. It’s too late for the swimming team for this season, but next year Emery High will have its first swimming team in school history.
The Emery County Commission has hired a manager for the facility, Shannon Hiatt. He is excited about the new adventure of operating the swimming pool. “Right now we are looking for lifeguards for the facility. Before we can open we must have our staff in place. There are a number of part-time positions available.
“We plan to be very flexible with our work schedules. The pool will open really early around 5 or 5:30 a.m. for the lap swimmers. There are several people in our county who travel to the Price pool at least once a week for lap swimming. We are going to open early so these people will have a chance to swim closer to home. We want everyone to know that we will train lifeguards and we will offer some free lifeguard classes. We are looking for adults who would like to work part-time as lifeguards.
“There will be two pools. Some people are confused about that. The indoor pool will be for lap swimming and also for recreational swimming and play. There will be a diving board and the depth on the deep end is 12 feet and 4 feet deep on the shallow end. There are wide stairs at the entry to the shallow end for the little ones to sit on.
“We recently set the rates for the annual swim passes. For a family of four the yearly pass is $335 with $25 for each additional person. This is a great deal if you plan on using the pool a lot. For a couple the annual pass is $260. A single person pass is $185. Senior citizens yearly pass is $135. Students 12-17 with student ID card is $135 and youth 4-11 is $110 for an annual pass. Age 3 and under are free, but they must wear a double swim diaper.
“The daily use schedule is $4 for an individual 18-61. Students, youth and seniors are $3. Tax is included in all the admission and rental fees. Lockers are available for rent on a six month basis for season ticket holders. Lockers are also available for day use swimmers.
“Each of the annual passes are good for 365 days from the date of purchase. We want the aquatics center to be a great place for parties, family reunions, work parties, church parties, birthday parties, just any kind of get together. There are rates for pool rental; the outdoor leisure pool for up to 100 people is $150 an hour. The indoor lap pool is $100 an hour for up to 100 people. To rent both the outdoor and the indoor pool for up to 200 people is $225 an hour. A $150 security deposit will be charged for pool rentals.
“We have a party room at the pool which can be rented for $35 an hour. We will also host birthday parties where up to 12 children can swim, have pizza, drinks, balloons and we’ll cleanup for $85. A $25 cleaning deposit is also charged for room rentals. A 50 percent deposit is required at the rental booking and the balance must be paid the day of the event. The cancellation policy states no refund of deposit unless cancelled 14 days in advance of the rental date.
“There are still a lot of details to be worked out, but we are pleased about the progress of the pool. The outdoor pool won’t come into use this year. But, next summer it will be filled and ready and waiting. The outdoor pool includes a lazy river feature, big water toy, whirlpool, zero water level entrance and several water sprinklers for the little ones. The deck of the pool will be finished in cement. In the future the county would like to put in a park surrounding the pool with grass and soccer fields, picnic tables and other facilities.
“We want people to use the pool. We would also like to include the pool in the Emery County Fair activities each summer. We might have free swim day and a barbeque or other activities. The most important thing right now at the onset of the new aquatics center opening is to get people out to see what it has to offer. We are planning a big opening bash with free swimming when the pool is ready. We will offer swimming lessons year round. There are six levels to swimming lessons outlined by the Red Cross. And we hope to move through these levels fairly quickly with aggresive scheduling. We want the swimmers to keep swimming to advance their skills. We also want to offer water aerobics classes. We will keep everyone posted on the opening as it gets closer. I believe this facility is well worth the wait,” said Hiatt.