No, the Gazette isn’t referring to Gaithersburg’s plan to spend $25,000,000 of public funds * on a swimming pool. They are referring to an initiative in Sykesville to carve space out of a public park to allow a developer to build and operate a pool. Interesting that they didn’t have similar advice for Gaithersburg, despite the fact that the City is proposing to spend an amount equal to half of the entire annual budget of the City to build a pool — and to take on an annual million-dollar operating loss to run it.
In an editorial in this week’s Carroll County edition of the Gazette, the paper opines:
The Town of Sykesville is considering again building a swimming pool, but this time without public money.
Little says summer more than a day at the pool, so we encourage the analysis, but we caution our elected officials to temper their zeal for the project with resident interest.
We question if enough residents care about the matter for the government to involve itself in it.
If residents have their own pool, why would they pay to go to a public pool? If they belong to one of the clubs in the area, why would they choose to pay to go to Sykeville’s?
Many questions remain over this project, and we do see merit in it. But the town should first ask residents if they have any interest in another swimming pool before spending too much effort on it.
All good advice, I think.
* The $25 million includes City tax revenues, County funds, State funds, Crown Farm developer funds, and land value. The Crown Farm funds were part of the deal with the City to annex the Crown Farm land and approve the development project, but the City is not obligated to spend the funds on a pool. (return)