SANTA CLARA — When the the George F. Haines International Swim Center shuttered earlier this year over safety concerns, no one quite knew what to expect in the coming months.
Now, city officials say it could take a couple of million dollars and a minimum of six to nine months to partially — and temporarily — reopen the renowned facility while a long-term solution is worked out.
In January, Santa Clara suddenly closed the nearly 60-year-old swim center after an inspection of the facility found critical safety issues, including “structurally unsound” buildings, cracking throughout the diving tower and concrete bleachers that were separating.
With consultants deeming the diving well too structurally damaged, the Santa Clara City Council decided to pursue reopening the other two pools at the facility temporarily while searching for long-term solutions. The three groups that use the swim center — Santa Clara Swim Club, Santa Clara Diving and the Santa Clara Aquamaids — have been scrambling to find pools to practice in over the last two months because of the closure.
But the path to reopening could be difficult.
“While it may be possible to reopen the ISC for limited use, the cost to do so will be significant,” Assistant City Manager Cynthia Bojorquez said.
This week, Santa Clara officials delivered more bleak news about the facility where some of the greatest Olympic swimmers of the 20th century trained. Since January, the city’s building department and the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health conducted their own assessments.
The county, which will ultimately decide whether it’s safe for the swim center to reopen, said the city must replaster the pools, repair or replace equipment that measures the flow rate of recirculating water, repair some of the dilapidated concrete and fix exterior issues that could allow someone to hop the fence. A canopy that stretches over the bleachers has gutters that pose a fall risk, and a recent analysis found it is covered in lead paint, complicating remediation plans.
Replastering the pools could be about $1 million, and fixing the fencing around the swim center could run upwards of $200,000. City Manager Jovan Grogan estimated it would cost the city roughly $2 million to meet the county’s terms. And that’s if everything goes as planned. The pools’ other parts are old, and last year, the facility was closed for more than 100 days due to mechanical issues.
“Our boiler is continuing to have problems, so there’s no guarantee that if we are able to open that the boiler would not fail,” Bojorquez said.
The city would also need to purchase portable showers and bathrooms to reopen since the building that houses the locker rooms has been deemed unsafe to enter. Shower trailers alone, city officials estimate, will cost $72,000 annually.
No plan was given to move forward at Tuesday night’s council meeting, prompting Mayor Lisa Gillmor to criticize city officials for not making the issue a priority.
“I’ve been knocking on a lot of doors lately and I can tell you that our community is upset about the swim center,” she said. “They’re very upset and they want it back online right away.”
In the meantime, the teams that frequently use the facility are waiting with bated breath to see what happens next.
Santa Clara Swim Club head coach Kevin Zacher said he’s concerned about the length of time replastering the pool could take — especially since the main pool is 25 yards by 50 meters.
“Is it an immediate need to get the pool back open, or would the health department be okay opening the pool knowing a replastering is being planned in the near future so that maybe we can get in and get through the summer and replaster during the down time,” he said. “Or maybe another person looks at it and says in fact the plaster is in decent shape and is going to be okay.”
Zacher said the club’s swimmers are still currently spread out around the area when it comes to finding a place to train, but the Santa Clara Unified School District has been particularly helpful in obtaining pool space. The club also recently purchased the Killarney Farms Swim Center on Pomeroy Avenue. The five-lane pool also needs repair, but Zacher said it will be the new home of the team’s learn-to-swim program.
Santa Clara has been discussing renovating or replacing the International Swim Center for decades. But, several attempts by the city to secure the necessary funding have come up short.
Santa Clara Swim Club Board President Amanda Pease has been helping lead a new effort by the three teams to forge their own path ahead — with or without the city. They’re forming the Santa Clara Aquatics Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to raising funds for a new swim center.
“We’re not even sure what the city is going to be able to do,” Pease said. “For the viability of all three clubs we need something. We need a swim center whether it’s at the ISC or somewhere else.”
If the teams have to go elsewhere, Pease said they’ve floated the idea of potentially building a new home at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds — especially in light of the news that the San Jose Earthquakes are building new public soccer fields there.
Ultimately though, Pease said they want to stay at the International Swim Center because of its history and legacy. Twenty-three world records have been set in the main pool — the last by a 17-year-old Michael Phelps in 2003. The 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympic synchronized swimming teams also trained there under legendary coach Chris Carver.
“It’s just been really frustrating,” Pease said. “We don’t necessarily know how much the city wants us and values us.”