Outdoor pool plan shifts to Roosevelt site

New city administrator Kevin Flanagan has jumped into plans for a new outdoor pool and recreation center bringing a new perspective.

The pool task force met at noon today at Fairfield City Hall, where Flanagan showed them a different plan than using O.B. Nelson Park, site of Fairfield?s outdoor pool for several years.

?When I first arrived, I heard about the pool and rec center project and thought about something where kids could swim and parents could be doing something nearby,? said Flanagan. ?I toured Roosevelt [Community] Recreation Center and swam in the indoor pool.

?I?m impressed with the management at Roosevelt, it?s really clean and the pool looks nearly brand new. Derik [Wulfekuhle, director of park and rec] does a wonderful job.?

Flanagan likes the idea of buying the Whitney property that?s for sale adjoining the Roosevelt rec center.

He had a quick plan drawn, placing an outdoor pool just south of the Roosevelt indoor pool. A new recreation center and additional parking can be built on the Whitney property. The recreation center would set behind the Dairy Bar on West Burlington Avenue, and the parking lot would be behind the Celluar Concepts strip office and the former Kennedy Car Wash, with access from 12th Street, across from Fairfield Hy-Vee Food and Drug Store.

?It could be a better deal in the long run, having everything consolidated in one place,? said Flanagan. ?Of course, we?d have Roosevelt assessed by an engineer, but it looks very sturdy and we could sustain an historical building at the same time.

?At this site, we have dirt to ?borrow? from one area to another ? at O.B. Nelson, we don?t. We?d have to haul in dirt, and we?re restricted where to site the pool at O.B. to the same footprint or dig a new site, but we can?t place a pool on fill.

?We can do anything at Roosevelt we would have at O.B. Nelson.?

An important part of Flanagan?s proposal is phases. An outdoor pool would be in phase I. A new recreation center would be in phase II.

?I?m an advisory to the pool task force and to the city council,? he said. ?I?m a liaison and have a responsibility to look for what?s best for both groups. The task force has been very committed and done a great job. It?s my job to look at all options.?