Cassie Head, representing the competitive swimming community in Habersham County, addressed the Habersham County Commissioners during Monday night’s meeting. Head, an advocate for the HCHS swim team, the Hurricanes, and the Piedmont College swimming program, voiced concerns on behalf of parents and athletes.
Expressing gratitude for recent repairs at the aquatic center, she proposed an ongoing partnership with a pool management company. Her primary focus was to present requests aimed at ensuring continuous improvement in the facility’s operations.
Longstanding concerns of health issues
Head acknowledged recent repairs, highlighted by a photo from Pip Pools on November 20, showcasing clear water in the Ruby Fulbright pool. However, she raised longstanding concerns, dating back to fall 2022 when many swimmers experienced health issues, including sinus and ear infections, linked to the pool.
Issues escalated in late May 2023, prompting the addition of 2,000 pounds of salt to rectify water quality issues for a swim meet. Unfortunately, this resulted in chemical injuries, emphasizing the severity of the problem. Head stressed the need for preventative maintenance schedules and a trained staff to address these issues.
Certified Pool Operators needed
In her role as the Director of Plant Operations for a healthcare facility, Head emphasized the need for Certified Pool Operators (CPOs) on staff. Despite recent staff changes, she called for 2-3 CPOs to ensure consistent and knowledgeable testing.
She reported that offers from Hurricanes Coach Mike Krippner to assist in pool maintenance were declined. She urged the County to explore maintenance schedules from successful aquatic centers, including the Frances Meadows Aquatic Center in Gainesville and Buncombe County Schools Aquatic Center in Asheville, NC.
Hosting state tournament
In conclusion, Head formally requested the County to consider hosting the District B state swim meet in July, bringing potential revenue to the community. Additional concerns regarding the pool deck and facility structure were deferred for future discussions with the Recreation Board.
Habersham County Commission Chairman Ty Akins addressed Head about her concerns. “Ms. Head, I would like to say the aquatic center is just one example of the services and facilities that the county offers that we just haven’t had sufficient funding to maintain and operate.”
Funding needed
Akins added, “I think this Board has shown that they’re willing to try to make some improvements and fix some things, and you just can’t ignore buildings and facilities and equipment that taxpayers pay for.”
“All the things that you ask require funding to be in the budget and there hasn’t been a big appetite for that, in my opinion, in the past,” stated Akins.
Head responded, “I tried to really take the financial aspect into consideration and the training of the employees should be the only external cost other than the maintaining of the pool company relationship for needed repairs.”
Akin replied, “I think our staff did the very best they could to jump on this as fast as they could and I appreciate everyone’s patience.”
