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Stratton pool to open this summer, but village board struggles with budget
STRATTON, Neb. — Stratton village board chairman Peggy McDonald wishes the board didn’t have to “borrow” from Peter to pay Paul to work within the community’s recreation budget.
This spring, rumor had it that Stratton’s city pool might not open this summer because of financial problems. But, Peggy is quick to point out that that rumor — as rumors most often are — wasn’t entirely accurate.
Peggy said that she and her fellow board members want residents to understand that the board works within a tight recreation department budget for the pool, the VM (community) Building and the library — and if one of these city services is particularly close to someone’s heart, residents may have to step forward to help support it.
“We’ll keep the pool open for another year,” Peggy said after a board meeting March 19, but it’s difficult for the board to look much further into the future.
Pool expenses last year were $16,612, for June, July and August. After figuring in pool admission and pool passes ($3,626) and a grant, the pool was still $9,000 in the hole, Peggy said. “We had to borrow from other departments to pay for the pool.”
And that’s what she and the board really do not like to do, even if it’s the way it’s had to be done in previous years.
For the pool, it’s sometimes difficult to find certified lifeguards and a manager and assistant manager, Peggy said. The board often helps pay for lifeguards’ classes to attract qualified guards.
The number of lifeguards required around the pool is determined by the square footage of the pool. “We like to keep at least two on duty, one at each end of the pool,” Peggy said, as well as one in the bathhouse. They have to have enough lifeguards for a rotation, she said, to fill in for vacancies when the kids have athletic camps to attend or family vacations, or if someone is sick. “And we like to pay decent wages,” she said. Payroll for three months for the pool last year was $10,127.
The pool itself requires regular maintenance, including repairs that are normal after 70-some years in existence, Peggy said.
“We’ll have to raise rates and passes,” Peggy said, but she is also encouraging pool supporters to brain-storm some fund-raisers to help the budget.
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Hmmm … let’s think … A bake sale (of course), a fun-in-the-sun swim meet, swimming (laps or miles) for donations.
Decorate a “floatee” and collect donations/votes for the best decorations in age divisions.
Sell T-shirts labeled “I’m a Swimmer. Eat my Bubbles” or “My Perfume is Chlorine.” Sell bottled water relabeled “POOL WATER,” and treat baggies of fish crackers, gummy fish and blue M&M’s.
Private pool parties; an evening swim for an older group of swimmers, or all women, or all men. A car and pickup wash by the lifeguards.
Schedule weekly or twice-weekly water aerobics classes for a fee with a volunteer instructor.
Collection jars painted blue, wearing goggles and swim caps, scattered throughout the community.
On the last day of the season, just before the pool’s drained, let dogs in to swim for a fee. And offer a garden hose to rinse them all off afterward.
Peggy’s idea is to serve a supper for the public before McCook National Bank’s “Hot Summer Nights” concert in the park. Add a dunk tank during supper.
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“No one ever wants to lose (a city service),” Peggy said. But, she added, she would like to get the community involved in fund-raisers and support not only for the pool, but for other services as well. She wants the community aware of expenses involved in each community service. The recreation budget was in the hole, -$21,125, at the end of 2017.
After the March 19 meeting, Peggy said, “The community knows now that we need help.”
Peggy said that since 2014, community members have looked at putting up a new building to house a community center, library and city offices. She admits there is a lot of sentimental value in the VM Building, but it’s difficult to heat and cool and expensive to maintain and insure. But estimates of $1 million for new bare-bones buildings are hard to justify as well, she said. “We need to be reasonable with our expectations,” she said.
Peggy said they will be looking at some major street projects this spring and summer, because the streets “took quite a hit” during the winter. “We need to keep things nice in Stratton, and we need to keep our infrastructure intact,” she said.
Stratton’s operating expenses are paid for with property taxes. The community does not have a city sales tax.