Bath Supervisors approve swimming pool upgrades

Hot Springs, Va. –

The Bath Board of Supervisors decides on upgrades to the county’s swimming pools. At Tuesday night’s meeting, the Board voted to spend $103,000 to add lift chairs at both the Valley and Millboro pools and to plaster both pools. And there will be an addition of a 12 x 100 foot concrete slab at the Millboro pool and the fence at the Millboro pool will be moved back 25 feet to allow for more space.

The Board discussed the potential upgrades at the pools at its last two meetings. The lift chairs are being added to meet Americans with Disabilities Act compliance regulations and the plastering is needed for maintenance. Parks and Recreation Director Mark Nelson said that plastering the pools should get another twenty years of life for the pools.

Nelson presented the Board with a number of different options Tuesday night, ranging from lift chair installation only at a cost of $8,000 to building a new pool facility at a cost of at least $500,000. The Board has considered the possibility of constructing a new county wide athletic complex with a pool in the future. Nelson suggested if the Board is seriously considering that, he would recommend just installing the chairs and patching plaster, which is a cheaper option.

Supervisor Claire Collins said planning for another pool facility is about five years out, if the idea is even pursued based on community feedback. Supervisor Collins said the ADA issue had to be addressed. But she said without a master plan on recreation and other county services, she doe not want to spend $100,000 on this and $100,000 on something else that may come up, because there is no plan. Supervisor Collins and Supervisor Bart Perdue abstained on the vote for the upgrades.

On Tuesday night, James Reynolds of CHA and Associates presented his findings on the solid waste system review that he conducted. He reported that the county system is costly, with Bath spending about $829,000 for 5,000 tons of waste in 2011. Reynolds said the Deerfield and Oak Grove trash sites are close to the county line, so there is a problem at those sites with out of county trash. He made the following recommendations for the Board’s consideration: pursue the use of the Covington landfill, remove the horizontal compactors, relocate the Deerfield, Oak Grove and Rock Quarry sites and combine the Rock Quarry and Nimrod Hall sites.

Reynolds also recommended amending service agreements, developing record requirements and closing the transfer station to municipal waste. He reported that the stabilization of the transfer station retaining wall is required, no matter its future use, and additional repairs will be needed if it remains open. Reynolds reported that the recommended changes could save the county at least $160,000 per year. The Board agreed to discuss the findings more at its work session scheduled for October 23.