Central O'ahu aquatic center will have Olympic-class pool
By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
By the end of the year, Central O'ahu Regional Park could be home to an Olympic-class swimming pool and clubhouse.
Construction should begin shortly, said Mayor Jeremy Harris. He said his goal is to have the $12 million project finished before his term ends in late December.
HARRIS
Harris announced plans for the aquatic center during his State of the City address Thursday night. The center will have a 75-by-25-meter pool, which will be separated into a 50-meter pool and 25-meter diving well with two 1-meter diving boards and a 3-meter board. It has been designed to meet the standards required for Olympic competition.
"It will give us a unique sports venue that we can then use to attract national and international events, as well as statewide events," Harris said.
City Deputy Managing Director Malcolm Tom pointed out that the pool will also be used for scuba training, part of the reason why it is called an "aquatic center."
"It's not just for racing and swimming," Tom said.
A clubhouse with showers, locker rooms, a weight room and office space will serve the aquatic center and the neighboring tennis complex. It will contain everything that is "necessary to do training for our sports teams as well as host national and international events," Harris said.
The city will seek a private operator for the aquatic center, as it has for the other sports facilities it built in recent years.
The tennis complex is run by the Hawai'i Pacific Tennis Foundation, which pays the city $4,000 a month for the right to operate and maintain the facility. "We pay the electric bill out of that and take care of the trees and the grass around the facility, but the operation and maintenance is done by the tennis foundation at their cost," Harris said. The city ends up breaking even and the foundation brings in revenue through tournaments, classes and clinics.
While looking for an operator for the pool, the city may also renew its attempt to find a private operator for the Waipi'o Peninsula Soccer Complex.
Previous attempts failed when city officials realized it would be cheaper for the government to maintain and operate the soccer stadium than it would be to hand over management. While previous estimates for the complex's operation costs ranged from $550,000 to $750,000 a year, the administration now estimates the annual cost to be closer to $300,000.
Tom said more than 1 million people have come to Honolulu for more than 40 soccer tournaments since 2001, bringing in more than $25 million to the state economy.
In addition, since the University of Hawai'i Wahine soccer team made the stadium its home field, attendance at its matches, where turnout used to be among the lowest in the nation, has soared to the top-five level for NCAA women's teams, Tom said.
Now that the City Council has passed laws allowing the city to privatize the soccer complex and charge user fees, Harris said the city may begin looking for a private operator in April.
Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
