Fox Point Village Board votes to keep the community pool where it is

Claudia Levens, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·2 min read
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In June 2023, the Village of Fox Point announced the pool's closure for the 2023 season, and possibly indefinitely, citing facility issues.
In June 2023, the Village of Fox Point announced the pool's closure for the 2023 season, and possibly indefinitely, citing facility issues.

The Fox Point Village Board has voted to keep the hotly-debated pool in its current location at 7100 N. Santa Monica Blvd.

The regular board meeting Tuesday night saw over an hour of public comment and board deliberation on the topic, which has seen widespread public interest since the village conducted a 2019 study on public support for reexamining the pool.

In particular, members of the public and the board went back and forth on whether the pool should stay at its current location or move to Longacre Park. They also discussed design elements, including a splash pad, recreational pool and lap pool.

On June 13, the village announced the pool's closure for the 2023 season, and possibly indefinitely, citing facility issues.

In addition to keeping the pool where it is ― the vote was unanimous ― the board passed a motion requesting that Ayres Associates, an outside consultant, reconfigure its design plans to reflect conversations that took place that evening.

Village Board Trustee Jennie Stoltz said, “It was quite a bit of progress in a very short period of time,” considering the village has been discussing this since 2019.

While Stoltz doesn’t use the pool often, she feels strongly about creating access to community resources. “Public resources like this pool are vital for our community to flourish and grow,” she said.

This rendering shows a new 7,500-square-foot pool at the existing Fox Point Pool site. The project is estimated to cost $4.7 million.
This rendering shows a new 7,500-square-foot pool at the existing Fox Point Pool site. The project is estimated to cost $4.7 million.

The original concept plans for the current location submitted in February by Ayres proposed the following:

  • Option 1: A 7,500-square-foot pool with a lap pool, zero-depth entry, and a small slide or plunge area.

  • Option 2: A 2,000-square-foot pool with a lap pool and an interactive splashpad, which is a designated area with in-ground and above-ground spray features.

This rendering shows a small splash pad and a four-lane, 2,000-square-foot lap pool at the existing Fox Point Pool site. The project is estimated to cost $3.4 million.
This rendering shows a small splash pad and a four-lane, 2,000-square-foot lap pool at the existing Fox Point Pool site. The project is estimated to cost $3.4 million.

Most comments from members of the public and the board expressed a desire for an option somewhere between options one and two.

Ayres had also proposed two additional options at Longacre Park, which were quickly eliminated, and followed similar design and square-footage patterns seen in the current location options.

But even back in 2019, Fox Point residents overwhelmingly supported keeping the pool at its current location, Stoltz said. According to the 2019 study, around 79% of participants wanted to keep the pool where it is.

The pool has experienced a decline in membership in the past few years, according to village documents.

In July, the village established a municipal pool citizens committee for the purpose of raising private funds to help pay for a new pool facility.

Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @levensc13

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Village Board votes to keep Fox Point Pool at existing location