Due to wear and tear, major renovations will have to be made to Carleton’s almost 40-year-old pool, according to athletics director Jennifer Brennings.
John Wilson, operations manager for athletics, said they are installing LED lights following an assessment by Honeywell and doing other general structural maintenance.
“[Honeywell] did a study basically on the conservation of energy, and usage of our utilities . . . water, lighting, heat,” he said.
The pool renovations are planned to be complete in spring 2014, according to Wilson. The pool will have to be shut down, likely in late April or early May, for about three weeks.
Most measures have already taken place, such as including better water conserving utilities. In addition, they are making gradual changes within the lighting around the complex towards the lower cost and energy output of LED and motion sensor lighting, Wilson said.
“Our utility bills run over a million dollars a year for the complex, so we’re looking at savings in that area,” he said.
Wilson said the structural maintenance they’re looking at will provide preventative, long-term benefits.
He said over the past year pools in the city such as Pinecrest and Brewer had to be shut down because of problems.
“Wilfrid Laurier had to close their pool for about a year, so we requested that an audit be done in the pool,” he said.
Another company called Aqua Wave came in and did an assessment on the pool, as well as an engineering firm that assessed the concrete structure within the area. Their full reports will be used in future pool maintenance, Wilson said.
“We hope that through doing all of this, we’ll get ahead of the game, and will be able to prevent any sort of things that would cause us having to close,” he said.
