Overland Park could be rethinking its plans to close smaller pools in favor of having only larger, regional pools.
For roughly two years now, Overland Park has been developing a new parks and recreation master plan, called Playbook OP, and the pool and aquatics section of that plan has been one of the most watched.
That’s because, under the current plan approved in 2013, Overland Park decided to close all of its smaller-scale, neighborhood-style community pools as they reached the end of their useful lives and switch to a solely regional aquatics approach.
Over the past decade, Overland Park has decommissioned Roe Pool, Marty Pool and Bluejacket Pool, something neighbors and avid pool-goers in those areas of the city have vehemently pushed back on.
However, a recommendation presented in November to the Playbook OP Steering Committee could move the city away from the current approach of closing smaller pools.
What do residents say about Overland Park’s pool needs?
Over the summer, Overland Park tapped Olathe-based market research firm ETC Institute to gather resident feedback on the current parks and recreation system and priorities for the next decade or so.
The survey found that outdoor pools are a top priority for residents.
According to the data presented to the Playbook OP Steering Committee last month, 67% of respondents with an opinion on the matter said they’d prefer more neighborhood-style public pools, and 68% said they support renovating and enhancing existing regional pools.
The majority of respondents supported developing new pools north of Interstate 435, keeping and renovating Stonegate Pool on Antioch Road (which is currently slated for decommissioning in the next decade or so) and enhancing existing outdoor pools in general.
Additionally, new public pools were listed as a top community priority, and pools and splash pads were among the project types that survey respondents said they were most willing to fund in the near future, along with trails and playgrounds.
Rachel Shuck, who lives in the Oak Park Manor neighborhood near the decommissioned Bluejacket Pool, isn’t surprised by the results of the survey.
“As neighbors, we believed people throughout Overland Park would rally behind the idea of community pools, and seeing the survey results laid out so plainly is powerful. The data makes it clear that residents want community pools,” she said.
Playbook OP’s draft pool plan would cost about $63.5M
The draft recommendation, according to committee documents, would switch the city’s focus to having both larger, regional aquatic centers with more amenities, while also still offering smaller-scale, community pools.
The plan calls for:
- keeping the city’s two regional outdoor pools, Young’s and Tomahawk Ridge,
- adding another regional pool at a site to be determined,
- closing Stonegate Pool when it has aged out and replacing it with a new community pool,
- adding another smaller community pool north of I-435,
- and having a total of 8 splash pads or water play areas around the city.
The estimated price tag for all this would be around $63.5 million over the next decade or so.
The draft plan also suggests reevaluating the need for a regional pool in the southern third of the city, south of 143rd Street, at some point in the future.
An alternative proposal is to maintain the current approach focused on regional pools only, for a cost of $29.4 million, and to add a third aquatic center.
Another option would be to spend upwards of $237.5 million to add a dozen small community pools as well as an indoor regional pool and an outdoor regional pool.
Hopes for Bluejacket Pool
Still, the draft aquatics concept plan that seems to be leading the pack, if ultimately adopted, likely won’t bring back decommissioned pools, especially not those that have already been converted into parks or are on track to, like Roe and Marty pools.
However, it does raise questions about the old Bluejacket Pool site in Bluejacket Park, which was decommissioned last year. The city has slated Bluejacket pool for demolition this year.
Shuck and her neighbors in the Bluejacket area hope one of the community pools called for in the draft recommendation from the steering committee goes into Bluejacket Park.
“There was a community pool there for 51 years, and it’s time to put it back on the map,” she said. “With the right commitment and public input process, there is a real opportunity to build a new pool in this space. Our community is ready, and the data backs it.”
Next steps:
- The Overland Park City Council still needs to review the full Playbook OP plan, which would include the pools and other details that will guide the development and renovation of park spaces.
- That is expected to happen in the next few months.
- In the meantime, the city council, the Overland Park Parks and Rec Advisory Council and the steering committee will have a joint meeting 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 8 at Matt Ross Community Center.
Keep reading: Overland Park loves its parks and pools. How could new parks plan change city’s approach?
