CITY HOPES FOR POOL BUBBLE BY NOV. 1

Cape Girardeau's new aquatics coordinator says a new bubble for the Central municipal pool will be worth the wait for swimming enthusiasts.

Randy Barnhouse, who was hired earlier this month as aquatics director, said Monday the city plans to have the new bubble installed by Nov. 1.

Although Central pool will be out of commission until then, Barnhouse is taking advantage of the opportunity to give the facility a facelift.

"I think we're really going to have something to be proud of," he said. "It will be brighter and cleaner and very well maintained."

Barnhouse said that while the facility is closed, workers have painted the pool, the bath house, reconditioned metal structures and generally "detailed" the pool.

Unfortunately, the timing of the replacement bubble has forced recreational swimmers to use Capaha pool, and since the weather has cooled considerably in the past couple weeks, pool use is down.

"We'll probably make a decision midweek on what to do over there," Barnhouse said. "Attendance has dropped off because of the weather and it's about time to put Capaha to bed for the winter."

The Nov. 1 target for the new bubble also will mean the pool will be ready only shortly before the Cape Girardeau swim team starts its fall season.

Barnhouse said some swimmers inconvenienced by the closure of Central Pool already have voiced their frustration. But he said he hopes the improvements will make the delay worthwhile.

"A lot of people who use the pool have spoken to me about it," Barnhouse said. "I know some of them are frustrated, but I try to tell them that what we've got coming is worth waiting for."

Parks and Recreation Director Dan Muser said a delay in securing a contract with the pool manufacturer is one of the primary reasons the bubble initially expected to be installed by October hasn't been replaced.

"The process took longer to get off the ground than anybody realized," he said. "Once the vendor ended up with a contract, they had become backlogged and were working on other bubbles at the same time."

The manufacturer, Thermo-Flex Inc. of Salina, Kan., expects to deliver the bubble by late October.

David Ash, Thermo-Flex's plant manager, said Monday that the company has other bubbles it's contracted to finish first.

"We're several weeks away," he said. "It's fall, and we're busy. There's no recession this year in Salina."

Ash said the new bubble is an improved version of the old one that had deteriorated considerably in the past couple of years. He said new materials will make the cover much easier to install and remove and should be more durable.

The bubble and a new heater for the pool facility will cost about $120,000, Muser said.

Barnhouse said there are several advantages to the new structure. He said simply having a bubble with insulation intact should cut utility costs considerably.

The aquatics coordinator estimated that 50 to 60 percent of the old bubble's insulation was gone.

Also, the Thermo-Flex cover features a translucent dome that will save on lighting costs during the day. In the past, the city has budgeted about $50,000 annually for utility costs at the pool.

"I think we're going to see some pretty substantial savings on utilities," Barnhouse said. "With the new bubble, we should be able to keep the pool better heated. We won't be losing air temperature because of missing insulation.

"The translucent dome is a big plus, because it will allow natural light, plus it will help heat it with passive solar heat."

The cover also includes a "Tedlar" coating, which is expected to preserve the structure for 10-15 years.

Barnhouse, who has worked in various capacities at the city pools since 1980, said he plans to increase attendance at Central pool and make its operation less of a drain on city funds.

"Ideally, I would like to set a nationwide example of how you can take something like this and make it less of a drain on city resources," he said. "We have a such a gem of a facility to work with.

"I'm open to any ideas the community has," he said. "I want to listen to people and not pretend I know everything there is to know about running the pool."