Tulsa Parks Department Proposes Replacing Three Public Swimming Pools

Tulsa's Parks department wants more than $9 million to repair and upgrade city pools.

It costs the City of Tulsa $352,000 every 10 weeks for maintenance and to pay for lifeguards at its five pools. The parks department says a better plan is to rebuild the pools.

There are five public pools in the City of Tulsa.

At the McClure pool, there's a traditional diving board, a high-dive, and a water slide.

"We come every year. We love the pool. We love the slide," said Tulsa resident Lindsay Elliott.

She lives in south Tulsa, but said she doesn't mind driving across town to the McClure pool; she only wishes there was a place just for the younger ones.

"It'd be nice if they had a shallow area for the little kids. It'd be nice," Elliott said.

She could get her wish if a plan put on the table by the parks and rec department is approved. It's asking for $9.4 million to rebuild McClure Pool, as well as the pools at Reed and Lacy Parks.

Read about estimated costs of the three pool projects.

"Rather than just going in and doing some maintenance, we realize that with a few extra dollars, we can actually construct brand new pools," said Dwain Midget of the City of Tulsa.

Midget said the project would bring the pools into the 21st Century. Among the improvements are fitness lanes, more water slides, and a pool for tots.

The city council still has to approve the plan before it goes to voters. Councilor Jack Henderson is worried that one of the two pools left off the list, Berry on North Wheeling, would eventually be closed, but the parks department says it's not in as bad a shape as the other three.

The taxpayers we spoke with at McClure support the plan and say it would be good for the city.

"If kids are outside exercising, getting all of that energy out, they are healthier. The families can do things together. It helps in many ways," said Tulsa resident Ana Hightower.

This is part of the city's capital improvement projects that come up for a vote every five years. If the council agrees, it would go before voters in November. If it passes it could be as long as 18 months before any construction would begin.