District 86 Prepares for What Could Be a $90-Million Referendum to Fix Its Unsafe Pools

As Hinsdale District 86 swim teams deal with a no-diving ban and outdated pools, school officials and architects are crunching the numbers for building entirely new facilities — and it’s not looking cheap.

In late December, District 86 Superintendent Bruce Law called for a ban on diving in Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South High School pools, which were built in 1958 and 1965, respectively. After a consultant evaluated the pools, it was determined that both pools’ diving wells were too shallow for safe practice, according to National Federation of State High School Association standards.

Pools need to be 12 feet deep for diving purposes, the consultant told school officials, and in some areas of District 86’s pools, depth doesn’t even reach 10 feet.

A school board member mentioned at a meeting last year that a Hinsdale Central diver had complained more than once about hitting her head on the bottom of the pool when she dives.

Arcon & Associates, the district’s architects, are working on plans for a new pool at Hinsdale Central right now, as opposed to renovating the existing structure, the Chicago Tribune reported. They presented several options to the school board to remedy the facilities’ issues, including deepening the diving wells of both pools — $2.7 million apiece — constructing a new six-lane, 40-yard pool in South’s natatorium — $13.3 million — and building a new natatorium and 10-lane, 50-meter pool at Central — $29 million.

The district's architects warned the board inflation has raised their previous estimates for facility improvements by about 20 percent. So, if the board opted to proceed with the $65.5 million package of renovations for both schools, the budget would be increased about $12 million to $78 million.

Taking that into account, and adding $12 million to $17 million for pool improvements, the board members directed the superintendent to prepare scenarios for a $90 million or $95 million referendum, which they will discuss at their meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at Hinsdale Central, 5501 Grant St., Hinsdale.

Several community members advocated for a new pool at a board meeting Wednesday, including former 1968 Olympic medal winner John Kinsella and members of both schools’ swim and dive teams.

The girls’ season is over, but the boys’ still continues through February. The diving ban and other pool restrictions are making it hard to host meets and compromising the success of the season, team members said.

“(It’s) impossible for us to host big meets, such as conferences, sectionals and state, as there isn’t enough deck space or stands to hold that many teams,” William Bowater, captain of Central’s boys swim and dive team, reportedly said at the board meeting. “When we do host meets, it is uncomfortable...not only as a result of the lack of deck space, but as well as the air quality being so poor. When the pool and stands are full, it gets unbearably hot as well as difficult to breathe as the air isn’t circulated and filtered enough.”

Pool consultants from Counsilman-Hunsaker Aquatics for Life agreed with this sentiment, stating that reports showed air quality at Central was poor, likely due to chlorine and unsatisfactory HVAC equipment.

Swim meets aren’t just limited in terms of diving, either. Neither District 86 pool can host water polo championships because one end of each of the pools are shallow enough to stand in, which would give one team an advantage, the Tribune reported.

Meeting attendees also discussed the issues of locker rooms at Central — and the fact that there’s only one for the boys and girls to share.

The teams take turns using the locker room, and when it’s occupied by boys, girls have to walk across the hall in their swimsuits, which Mary Kress, co-captain of the girls swim and dive team, said is "unacceptable." When girls are using the locker room, boys use the visitors’ locker room, which doesn’t have showers and prevents them from getting clean after practice.

The pool at South is similar, but boys and girls have separate locker rooms.

Martin Malecki, a Clarendon Hills native who graduated from a District 86 school in 1977, said the pool looks the same today as it did the year he finished high school.

“It’s time to replace the pool and not repair and make do,” he said.

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