Council OKs $125,000 for Pool Repairs

Nordhoff High School’s aging outdoor pool, open to the community during summer vacation, will undergo $125,000 worth of badly needed renovations.

The City Council approved the expenditure of federal money for repairs on the Ojai Unified School District’s pool at its Tuesday meeting.

“It just barely meets the health department’s guidelines,” said Carol Belser, the city’s recreation director. “There were times when we thought we may not be able to offer a summer program.”

Touring the facility Wednesday, Assistant Supt. Robert Smith pointed to large cracks in the pool deck and areas where the concrete is separating and lifting away from the foundation. Moreover, large patches on the pool bottom where the plaster had fallen away were visible.

Work on resurfacing the pool and replacing the deck should begin next month and be completed by January, he said.

The funds will not only pay for improvements to the pool, which was built in the 1960s by the school district and the city, but will also help to ensure that the $2 admission fee for the 100 people a day who use the pool during the summer does not rise, Belser said.

Under the terms of the repair-and-use agreement between the city and school district, the district will no longer charge the city an hourly rental rate that can total $3,000 each summer.

Smith sees the project as an example of the kind of partnerships that should be forged between the city and school district.

“We are part of this community and our facilities should be put to good use,” he said.