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Monday, February 28, 2000

Rockport finalizing initial plans for city park, pool area

Pool will have a cover when park opens in January; officials say full enclosure will have to come later

By Aimee Courtice
Caller-Times

Twelve-year-old Marissa Lyon is pleased that Rockport soon will have a place where she and her friends can chill out.
   "Unless you're a member somewhere, there's not a lot of places kids can go swim," she said.
   By early next year, kids and winter Texans in Rockport and the surrounding area can soak up warm winter rays at the park and pool area, which is expected to open in January, said Mayor Pro Tem Allen Moers.
   City and county officials are awaiting the final drawings for a community pool and park area in Rockport since they and the project's major donor have agreed on how the pool should be constructed.
   Ceil Frost, a Rockport resident for 15 years, donated 12.5 acres for the park and pool project. As a trustee of Rockport-Fulton Youth Foundation, she also matched a $500,000 grant awarded by the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife last August.
   A 3-foot-deep wading pool will be next to a competition pool. A park area will surround the pools.
   Frost wanted the competition pool to be fully enclosed, but city officials told her it would be too expensive, mainly because of air-conditioning costs.
   "I'm disappointed, but we're just going to move on and get a pool going and see how it works," she said.
   The city of Rockport, Aransas County, the Aransas County Independent School District and the project's major private donor agreed to construct a cover for the eight-lane competition pool, although it will not yet be fully enclosed.
   Tom Staley, city and county recreation coordinator, said a full enclosure for the pool would be built in the future.
   "It's not a dead issue," he said. "It's just not desirable at this time."
   Moers, who also serves as chairman for the pool committee, said the cover would become the roof for enclosure. He also said plans include building up the foundation now so the future enclosure won't be too costly.
   Once city and county officials approve final plans for the pool and park area, the project will go out for bid, probably this summer, Moers said.
   The project is a partnership between the city of Rockport, Aransas County and the Aransas County Independent School District, with each contributing as much as $25,000 annually for maintenance and operating expenses.
  
  

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Staff writer Aimee Courtice can be reached at 886-3622 or by email at courticea@caller.com

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