Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Countryside Swimming Pool Now Dirt

The residents of the Countryside neighborhood had been listening to the heavy equipment coaxing large chunks of concrete from the once vibrant Countryside Swim Club for a week. In its day it had brought the community together with family gatherings and childhood birthday parties. The swim club is not the only community gathering place lost to the new "urbanisim" but it is representative of the community bonds that have been broken throughout the city. What will replace Countryside Swim Club? I expect whatever goes there will have to prove to bring "revenue" to the city and "feel good" community bonding is not the priority. Though it may be an acceptable use in the long run - it will not be the Swim Club community center it once was - we must embrace "change". We don't want to be labeled "change haters". Resisting "change" insinuates you are not patriotic. If you are not willing to sacrifice your beloved piece of history to "new and shiny" you must be a "change hater". Is change always good?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I find it absolutely amazing that the city is either unable or unwilling to develop a long-term plan for the property, but they do not hesitate when it comes to destroying it one chunk at a time.

Newt said...

Revenue generation can be very difficult to accurately forecast. No doubt, figuring out how much revenue an enterprise generates can be measured in bottom line terms; however, revenue is also developed in a more global sense.

I would suggest that having a quality recreation and aquatic facility, coupled with other improvements around the city, would generate more revenue across the city than can be measured in a traditional bottom line.