Pools headed for deep water again

Deirdre Newman

NEWPORT BEACH -- Some Newport-Mesa school board trustees say it’s time

Newport Beach paid its fair share of the maintenance for the swimming

pools at two city high schools.

Martha Fluor and Wendy Leece would like the long-term leases the

district has with the city for the pools at Newport Harbor and Corona del

Mar to be updated. Right now, most of the financial maintenance burden,

including repairs and energy costs fall on the district, they said.

“We just want to make sure that everything is fair and square and

above board,” Fluor said.

The pools have caused ripples of tension between the two entities

before. Last June, city officials finally acquiesced to pay $33,760 for

heating and filtration costs for both pools after originally keeping the

Corona del Mar pool unheated.

That tension is one reason the district is currently trying to

negotiate a single joint-use agreement with the city that would cover all

shared facilities, said Mike Fine, assistant superintendent. A single

agreement would provide the same terms for all the shared facilities like

the gyms, the fields and the proposed Mariners’ library.

“We really wanted to do it for a long time,” Fine said. “Last year’s

episode over the swimming pool put it on the front burner.”

Currently the district has two separate joint-use agreements for the

two pools with the city, which charges some users a fee. But the district

doesn’t see a penny of that money, Leece said.

Meanwhile, the costs to maintain the pool are escalating.

“In effect, we are probably losing money on those pools because the

agreements are out of date and the use and the overuse of them contribute

to the wear and tear -- we end up paying for that,” Leece said.

But according to those agreements, the district has the ability to

bill the city for maintenance, said Andrea McGuire, recreation

superintendent for Newport Beach.

McGuire said the city has always had a good working relationship with

the district and is receptive to discussing renegotiation of the

agreements.