Pool, splash pad concern council

Staffing of the municipal swimming pool and completion of the adjacent splash pad drew the concern of Mayor Jason Willis and city council members at the July 5 meeting of the new administration.
The pool has been open for the past several weeks on a limited basis, and only three of eight people who  took a recent training course passed the lifeguard certification test. But the city has secured two more certified lifeguards from Lafayette to fill out the staff.
Lifeguard training was conducted by A&M training Group LLC at a cost of $2,800.
The council set the new pool hours as 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Admission will be $2 for children under 12, and $3 for persons 12 and older. Payment of admission will cover the entire day's operation.
The city is also planning to offer swimming lessons during the last two weeks of July at a cost $20 per week.

Splash Pad
Mayor Willis expressed concern that the splash pad,   which is not yet completed, does not have any fencing around the site and calls for a concrete apron of only five feet.
"Considering the area where the splash pad is located (Theater and Honore Streets), I wouldn't want my children playing there without some type of fencing," Willis said.
He said a semi-private/security fence would cost around $10,000 and the addition of another five feet of concrete to the apron of the splash pad would run about $20,000.
The city is paying Kincaid  Recreation Co. LLC $142,128 for the splash pad itself and the fencing and apron extension would push the total cost of the project to approximately $172,000.
The council delayed action on the fencing and apron extension until next meeting when exact costs for the two additions would be available.
Money for the project is coming from funds received by the city from a parishwide recreation bond issue.

In other business, the council authorized McBade Engineers & Consultants to apply for a state grant of up to $5 million for improvements to the city sewer/waste water system. The city would have to provide a 25% match to any grant received.