Kenai council approves $46,400 to keep high school pool open as swim club rates nearly triple

The Kenai Central High School pool will stay open through fiscal year 2027 under a $46,400 grant agreement the Kenai City Council adopted Wednesday, Aug. 19. The money is meant to offset the pool's rising utility costs.

Kevin Lyon, the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District's planning operations director, said he did not believe the pool could stay open without the city money. In return the district guaranteed at least 8.5 hours a week of lap and open swim and six hours of swim lessons, plus Saturday rentals, with exceptions for maintenance and staffing shortages.

The city covers utilities; the district raises fees to pay its pool manager and lifeguards. Council Member Bridget Grieme said she supports keeping pools open but raised several concerns. She asked whether the district had sought money from Kenai Peninsula Community Pools, a group she said raised funds from Peninsula residents for that purpose. Lyon said the district is in contact with the group, but its funds have not been made available. Grieme also noted that the district's fees exceed what the Peninsula Piranhas swim club projected, and that Kenai residents get no reduced rate even though the city is paying.

Potential state utility funding she raised has not yet been distributed by the state, Lyon said. A meeting is set for early September on how that funding could be allocated.

City Manager Terry Eubank said the swim club's hourly rate is expected to rise from about $35 to about $90, but that the club appeared supportive. The rate sheet sets $90 only if a club's coach is a certified lifeguard, and $125 if not. He called the deal "a one-year solution." Any caveats Grieme raised would need to be measurable and agreed to by the district, he said. None were added, and the resolution passed by unanimous consent.

Lyon said it was too early to tell what fiscal 2028 holds. The district's April budget closed district-operated pools. The Soldotna pool remains closed, and Homer's pool secured funding for one year. Five of the seven are staying open under cost-sharing deals.