Staff hoping for post-spring break opening; timeline depends on extent of repairs
ANISSA CHAK
WSU will not know if the pool can be open until after the contractors visit during spring break.
After a long-term closure, WSU Student Recreation Center staff are still unsure when the pool will open back up.
Currently, there are two separate issues— an air bubble forming beneath the vinyl surface of the pool and a leak in the surge tank, said Jeff Elbracht, WSU Facilities and Finance director.
The parts required to fix the leak arrived March 3, and the repair is expected to be done this week. The leak itself would not usually require the pool to close, but is something he wanted to fix, Elbracht said. The surge tank has leaked before; the liner is only several years old.
For weeks, the vendor had been unable to come to investigate and fix the issue. The vendor will arrive during spring break and evaluate the issue. Elbracht said he is hopeful the issue will be resolved over break.
“We want to open as soon as possible but we want to solve the problem,” he said. “We want to get up as soon as possible. But we also need to make sure that we fully solve the problem.”
The pool closed briefly in early February. However, when the problems continued, the pool was closed later in the month and has been closed ever since, he said.
“The pool is 21 years old and unfortunately after 21 years, you tend to have mantine issues,” Elbracht said. “Unfortunately, this is not [an issue] we could anticipate.”
The pool repairs are more of a disruption than they would be thanks to supply chain and workforce issues related to the pandemic, he said.
“One contractor who said they couldn’t come out and take a look at it until after Memorial Day. We obviously did not feel that was a reasonable option,” Elbracht said.
Even though the SRC pool closed, the Smith and Gibb Pools near Martin Stadium are available to students and the public, he said.
“It’s obviously not quite as convenient for some people so I think that’s deterred a little bit of usage, but in general, it’s been able to serve a lot of people,” Elbracht said.
“They don’t have to disclose what the issue was as long as they plan on opening the pool back up,” she said.
WSU will not know if the pool can be open until after the contractors visit during spring break, Elbracht said.
