We need to look beyond the needs and geography of the high school when thinking about the construction of a new pool. Why limit it to high school students? Why tear down a much-used parking lot to build it? Why not consider the needs of the whole community?
First of all, the parking structure should not be torn down. I live across the street from the high school on Scoville. Many people don’t realize that beyond the many, many activities going on at the school (including sports events, social events, plays, concerts, banquets, school board and other community meetings) there are many other groups and events using the building every day of the week (Triton classes, testing, craft fairs and the book fair, to name just a few)
All of that is in addition to the parking structure’s use by people attending the Farmers Market, adult soccer, youth baseball, kickball and other games, and other sports events, especially night games. Shall I go on?
We need that parking structure.
It is also ecologically unethical to tear down a building that young. Why just a couple years ago we were talking about adding a level or two! How can it be possible that we don’t need it anymore?
Let’s build a community swim center that will be available to as many of Oak Park and River Forest’s residents as possible.
Locate it somewhere else close to the high school, but not directly on its (already crowded) campus. Can’t the high school swimmers walk to the pool? They are athletes, after all. Locate the pool somewhere easily reached by people coming home from work. Locate the pool centrally so it can be used by everyone in Oak Park and River Forest.
Swimming is something that can be done by everyone, young and old, all year round. It’s something young children can learn and probably should learn, so that they are safe around our lakes and at our pools during the summer. We have three swim teams in Oak Park: TOPS through the Y, along with Fenwick and OPRF, and they all need a place to practice and hold meets. Swimming is also something more and more adults are doing as part of a total exercise program and as the popularity of cross-training and triathlons grows. Our population is also aging — Esther Williams swam almost until the end of her life (she died at age 91 in 2013).
And we’re going to need more than one pool. It would be good to have multiple pools for swimming and one for diving, of course. We also need a pool for people to walk and exercise in. Have you been to a health club lately and seen all of the people running and walking in the lanes, or doing water exercise classes? We also need shallow pools for swimming lessons, swimming lessons for young and old.
I envision a new, modern, accessible natatorium with multiple pools, flexible and extended hours, rehab and health centers, a parking lot underneath, and, of course, solar panels on the roof to defray the costs of heating all that water. (By the way, when are the solar panels going to be installed on Ridgeland Commons’ roof?)
Our OPRF swim center is located close to transit and convenient (but not next) to the high school. There are generous bike racks on its sides, and a Divvy bike dock, too. The Buzz Café is there, along with a juice bar and deli.
I was standing on the Oak Park Green Line platform thinking about drafting this letter when I noticed an empty lot on South Boulevard, just east of Oak Park Avenue, between an empty building and another building that did not look architecturally significant. What a great location! A 10-minute walk from the high school. Walkable or bike-able for many residents. Close to the el and several bus lines — one could go before or after work.
Let’s build a swim center there for future high school students, future children and adults. Let’s build a swim center that looks ahead to the future health and fitness needs of as many residents as possible.
Catherine Baumann is an Oak Park resident, an OPRF High School neighbor, a swimmer and a taxpayer.