黑料福利社

The Yakima City Council on Tuesday agreed to put up to $230,000 in one-time reserve money toward reopening city pools聽鈥� a commitment meant to mirror a recent outpouring of community support.

In March, Republican state Reps. Jeremie Dufault and Chris Corry of the state鈥檚 15th Legislative District announced a private funding campaign to reopen Lions and Franklin Park pools, both of which were cut from the 2026 city budget to fill a $9 million deficit.

Lions Pool is the city鈥檚 only indoor, year-round public pool. It received enough one-time funding to stay open through February but has been closed for more than a month. Franklin Park pool, on the other hand, was completely eliminated from the 2026 budget pending significant repairs.

The lawmakers鈥� campaign set out to raise $120,000聽鈥� enough to keep Lions Pool open for two months.

Less than two weeks after launching, the effort has already exceeded that goal.

Sens. Curtis King of Yakima and Nikki Torres of Pasco, and Reps. Deb Manjarrez of Wapato and Gloria Mendoza of Grandview, also have been part of the effort. King told council members on Tuesday night that the 黑料福利社 Community Foundation鈥檚 Lions Pool fund had more than $120,000 in it, and lawmakers had received pledges for an additional $30,000. They鈥檇 also been in contact with a contractor that may be willing to do at least a portion of the required repairs at Franklin Park Pool pro bono.

鈥淚'm always amazed at how this community steps up when they see the need, and they've done it again,鈥� King said.

Dufault and Corry, who also attended the meeting, echoed those sentiments.

鈥淭his community stepped up,鈥� Corry said. 鈥淭hey heard loud and clear what the need was. And there were a lot of large donors, but also a lot of small donors that said, you know, 鈥業 grew up swimming in this pool.鈥� We got texts from people with pictures of their workout rings from swimming in Lions Pool, saying, 鈥榃e need to get it back open, I'm excited to get it back open.鈥欌��

Issues at Franklin Pool

Based on recent estimates, $230,000 would likely cover Franklin Pool operations for one summer, and at least some of the repairs needed at the facility. The city has that amount available in reserves.

Two weeks ago, Recreation Program Supervisor Jason Zeller told council members that Franklin Pool has two separate leaks that have caused it to lose tens of thousands of gallons of water a day when filled. Although initial estimates placed repairs around $80,000, an exact price tag isn鈥檛 fully known given the extent of the damage. Council member Rick Glenn suggested that the council prioritize keeping Lions Pool open for longer, while leaving the question of reopening Franklin Pool unanswered considering the unknowns around repairs.

At a minimum, the funding would give the city a means to assess the full cost of repairs, offering a better sense of whether it's practical to open for the summer. At this point, Finance Director Craig Warner said the city doesn鈥檛 have enough to open Lions Pool for the full year, but it鈥檚 committed to making donations and reserves go as far as possible.

He also reminded the council that the reserve funding is one-time money, and the city is still seeking a longer-term funding source for the pool in the upcoming budget.

鈥淭his is really for 2026 at this point, and we鈥檒l use it as far as we can make it stretch,鈥� Warner said.

Opening date for Lions Pool

Council member Juliet Potrykus made a motion to adopt a resolution to authorize up to $230,000 in reserve funding to support the reopening of Lions Pool for at least two months in 2026 and to repair and prepare Franklin Pool for potential summer operations. She also moved to direct city staff to open Lions Pool in some capacity by April 15.

Because the pool just closed in February without a definitive reopening date, Public Works Director Scott Schafer said many of the pool鈥檚 former lifeguards have gotten other jobs. The city would need to go through the process of hiring and training enough staff before it can reopen. Looking to the last week of April, Schafer said it鈥檚 possible the pool could open in a very limited capacity聽鈥� maybe just a few hours a day.

Council members all agreed on the importance of reopening Lions Pool, but some disagreed on whether to specify an opening date. Council member Patricia Byers moved to amend Potrykus鈥� motion to direct staff to reopen the pool as soon as possible.

鈥淚 can鈥檛 support putting that amount of stress on staff,鈥� Byers said, especially when she already knows they're invested in working expeditiously on the issue.

But Potrykus and Mayor Matt Brown both highlighted the importance of urgency, especially given how quickly lawmakers and members of the community sprang into action to support the reopening. Byers鈥� motion narrowly failed in a 3-4 vote, and ultimately, the council voted unanimously in favor of the original motion.

Community feedback

During public comment, more than a dozen swimmers and community members thanked the council and lawmakers for continuing the effort to keep the pools open, emphasizing Lions Pool鈥檚 importance as a community resource for high school swim teams, swim lessons and exercise opportunities for older adults and people with disabilities.

Many also came with an ask: Keep Lions Pool open permanently.

Adelaide Loeser, an Eisenhower High School senior and state champion in the 100-yard butterfly, told council members she wouldn鈥檛 be where she is without Lions Pool. Between swim practices and teaching swim lessons, she spends 15 hours a week at the pool during peak high school swim season. She thanked the council for continuing the conversation, but urged it to also look at long-term solutions.

Loeser鈥檚 sister, Reed, asked the council to open Lions Pool at least from the start of the girls鈥� season on Aug. 24 through the end of the boys鈥� season in February.

鈥淚've gone to state both my freshman and sophomore years, and I intend to go to state again next year, but I can't if we have no pool,鈥� she said.

Lynnette Whitney, a swim parent, also encouraged the city to explore more efficient uses of the pool. That could include things like increasing programming to bring in more revenue, cutting down operating hours to focus on when the pool is most used and operating on a seasonal basis if necessary.

Whitney said if the city can secure enough private funding to keep Lions Pool open through the end of the year, she鈥檇 like to see the facility added back into the next biennial budget fully funded.

鈥淚 think we can continue to get private funding, especially if we can show that it's being used in a really wise way,鈥� Whitney said. 鈥淎nd I would just love to see a really thriving, healthy pool once again in Yakima.鈥�