City to turn dirt on pool next week

The City of Clarendon will break ground its water recreation facility next week after aldermen approved cost saving measures last Thursday.

Mayor Sandy Skelton said the groundbreaking ceremonies are scheduled for Tuesday, September 17, at 2 p.m. at Fourth and Kearney streets, the site of the new Clarendon Aquatics Center.

“All the numerous donors and others are encouraged to attend,” Skelton said. “A&S General Contractors will begin moving equipment to the site prior to the groundbreaking and construction will start soon after the 17th.”

The city council met September 5 with Lloyd Finley of A&S General Contractors of Amarillo and Craig Kooda of subcontractor Gold Medal Pools of Frisco. After consulting with pool designer Dave Schwartz, the council accepted value engineering recommendations that lowered the cost of the facility by more than $320,000.

The pool project was also boosted last week by the donation of $25,000 from Jerry and Margaret Hodge in the name of the High Card Ranch.

“We cut $321,000 and did not affect the size or features of the project,” Skelton said.
Significant savings, more than $122,000, came from an apparent over estimation on the cost of outdoor overhead lighting at the facility.

Another large savings was the acceptance of switching the construction method of the pool walls from poured-in-place concrete to a shot concrete method known as gunite.

City officials had been wary of gunite construction, by Skelton said Gold Medal has an extensive portfolio of gunite pools they have done.

Mayor Skelton also said that the pool designer agreed to the gunite method after Finley and Kooda agreed to eight specific construction method requirements proposed by Schwartz.
Skelton said the estimated date of completion for the project, depending on weather, is June 15, 2020.