Crowded Waters
Utilize a better design process to ease programming tensions and develop more efficient aquatic facilities
By Arash Izadi
Photos Courtesy Of LPA Design Studios
Aquatic centers are facing increasing pressure to accommodate diverse programming, everything from baby aerobics to water yoga. Everyone wants a part of the pool. Too often, debates over the design can turn nasty, with emotions running high.
For community-center leaders, it often seems impossible to keep everyone happy. Tight budgets and a diverse range of popular activities make it harder to create facilities that are cost-effective and meet the real needs of the community.
At LPA, we’ve been through these discussions many times. Tough choices need to be made. But a well-planned design can satisfy the community with facilities that make economic sense and provide flexibility to accommodate shifting interests.
There are three key elements that make the process effective in developing plans that work for the entire community. Building more pools is not always the best answer.
1. Focus on community input.
Community workshops are vital and not simply because they give a voice to the residents. These workshops will help leaders understand what constituents really want from an aquatic center, not their simple, knee-jerk reactions. It’s essential to separate the data from the emotion and develop clear ideas about core interests.
Expect to hear from two distinct groups: the competitive athletes and the recreational swimmers. We saw this dichotomy when seeking community input about a planned aquatic center commissioned by the park district in Rancho Cordova, Calif., a city of 110,000, near Sacramento. Dozens of kids on aquatic teams showed up with their parents and made quite an impact. We also heard from constituents who advocated for recreational uses, such as classes for babies and seniors.
At Rancho Cordova, the existing 1960s-era center had three pools, which sounds great, but they failed to meet modern needs for uses such as synchronized swimming, swim meets, and even swim lessons, due to the pools’ depths and shapes- For this project, a few important questions needed to be answered: Should the city renovate the existing complex? Or build a new one? And if a new aquatic center is built, what is the best design considering the community's needs, its resources, and the space available?
As part of the process, community outreach and workshops produced full market and operational studies. The market study helped validate the needs expressed by the community and addressed important questions about the community:
• What was the effective service area?
• Where did people come from?
• How far did they travel?
• What other facilities existed in that service area and what was charged?
The operational study helped the design team and parks leadership understand what it would take to operate the new facility and how design solutions would impact those costs. The research was essential to determine the potential impacts on the long-term community use and cost-recovery targets as different options were considered, including sizes and types of pools, and the basics, such as play equipment.
Based on the data, the community decided to start anew, since rehabbing the existing facility turned out to be costly, and upgrading the existing pools wouldn’t meet the programmatic goals. Instead, based on feedback, a decision was reached to build a two-pool complex that is specifically designed to meet programmatic needs, including a competition-sized lap pool, giving athletes plenty of space for their events, and a recreation pool with a play structure and two lanes for lap swim.
The recreation pool also has a popular feature known as “zero entry” or “beach entry,” a direct result of community input. Families love the feeling of not having to walk down steps. This will make the recreation pool even more attractive, and the addition of the lap lanes will allow lap swimmers to use them when the competition-sized pool is occupied.
2. Develop options around the budget.
As part of the process, we consider cost, revenue, and programming options. Look at the budget holistically, with an eye toward what programs may generate revenue and long-term interest, in addition to the initial development cost. In many cases, programming ideas that may sound like luxuries are often very cost-effective when the big picture is considered. Water slides, whirlpools, and lazy rivers may sound like luxuries, but they add a lot of pizzazz to a project and can help maintain interest.
In this process, prioritization is essential. Demand always outpaces the budget. It’s not about everyone getting exactly what they want. The goal is to create the best possible project for the community that meets the needs of the majority of the users, based on the available resources.t This is done by separating wants from needs and helping the community go through a prioritization process that recognizes the short- and long-term goals.
Normally, an aquatic center draws plenty of patrons when it opens, but attendance tends to dwindle over time, especially if children don’t feel excited. Pools with kid-friendly features tend to keep families coming back and can make a big difference in cost recovery. Remember that doubling the number of pools will not double the cost of each pool. They will have many shared costs, such as the support facilities and buildings.
Of course, a two-pool complex isn’t always feasible in limited budgets. Then the challenge is to strike a balance between the community’s various needs in one pool, as is the case for an aquatic-center project on a tribal reservation in Northern California.
In light of the priorities of the community and the wellness concept of the facility, integrating both medical/clinical facilities with recreation facilities, the idea is to build a single hybrid pool that will meet the needs of both recreational and athletic swimmers. The facility is envisioned as a true wellness center, combining a full healthcare facility with what one would find in a collegiate recreation center. Program elements include clinical-exam rooms, physical-therapy rooms, and X-ray equipment, as well as recreation pools, therapy pools, fitness rooms, locker rooms, and potentially an elevated running track. The hope is to achieve an ideal balance by adjusting the size and number of swim lanes to make room for the recreational needs, but not so much that competitive teams will feel hemmed in.
The Southern California desert community of Yucca Valley is embracing a similar approach. It wants a covered natatorium to provide protection from heat and wind, but the extra expense will limit spending on other parts of the project. As a result, we are working with the community to develop a hybrid single pool that balances both competitive and recreational swimming, instead of two pools. The envisioned pool will have three distinct areas in one body of water—one area for lap swim; the second area with equipment, shallow water and passive areas for play; and the third area a receiving pool for a slide.
3. Carefully evaluate operation expenses.
There are many costs to consider beyond the obvious expenses, like staffing and maintenance. The most effective way to heat a pool is with natural gas, but could solar panels be installed or electricity used to reduce the cost? While solar panels can offset electricity cost, solar thermal is a more effective method that has better cost recovery. Here, small sheets of water are heated by the sun to offset the use of heaters to increase water temperature.
It is also important to consider different revenue streams. We always ask clients what they hope to make via cost recovery, and then calculate the numbers with a crucial question in mind: Can they afford to run the type of facility they want? As always, it’s important to explore various scenarios, keeping in mind that special features like water slides cost more upfront, but can bring in significant revenue over time, which helps offset operational costs.
It’s usually best to come up with a few alternatives, typically variations on the same theme. By the time the operations study is completed, the big picture can be seen.
In knowing which program to build, what it will cost, and what it will cost to operate, this vital information can then be presented to the board or city council to help make an educated decision.. Ideally, more than a single option will be provided, but there may be one preferred option.
This planning process requires hard work. But remember that there is a huge and growing demand for aquatic centers for a reason: They are the focal point of communities, and they support health and wellness like no other public facility.
Arash Izadi, PLA, ASLA, LEED AP BD+C, is the Director of Sport + Recreation at LPA, a fully integrated firm of architects, engineers, interior designers, and landscape architects, that designs innovative environments that work better, do more with less, and improve people’s lives. Reach him at aizadi@lpadesignstudios.com.