The Pacific Palisades Community Council voted 13-1 with nine abstentions last Thursday ‘to support the efforts of the community to resurrect the community swimming pool in Temescal Gateway Park.’ The pool was closed last February because of leaking pipes with repairs to cost $400,000. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and the Palisades-Malibu YMCA, which operated the pool, were unable to reach a new lease agreement. Citing liability concerns, the Conservancy has since temporarily filled in the pool with gravel and dirt covered by sod. Community Council vice chair Susan Nash drafted the motion, saying ‘I think in this particular area, we can do something useful, by urging the stakeholders to work this out,’ she said. ‘The goal I have for tonight is that we support the efforts of the people to raise the money and open the pool.’ Members of Friends of the Temescal Pool (FTP), a nonprofit organization dedicated to reopening the pool, spoke last Thursday about what they have done so far and their goals for the future. The organization has filed a lawsuit against the Conservancy and its partner, the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, asking the court to order the Conservancy to negotiate a pool lease, pay to repair the pool, and make the park fully accessible to the disabled. FTP contends that by filling in the pool, the Conservancy violated its contract agreement with the Presbyterian Synod, from which it acquired the property in 1994, and its obligation under Proposition A to provide recreational facilities for senior citizens. According to the lawsuit, ‘The pool was the only part of Temescal Gateway Park that was open and accessible for recreation use by many handicapped and senior citizens of the community.’ FTP President Jane Albrecht said her organization is working on a business plan with concrete proposals for reopening the pool. The operator may be the YMCA or another interested party. The organization has decided that a swim card should be available to any community member who wishes to use the pool. When the YMCA operated the pool, it was for members only. ‘The idea is to present the plan to the community and Conservancy once it is complete,’ Albrecht told the Palisadian-Post. ‘We will work to get it ready as quickly as possible and are aiming to have it done in six to eight weeks.’ At the meeting, Albrecht announced that Stephen Groner, a real estate investor who lives in Santa Barbara, has pledged $100,000 to repair the pool. Groner’s mother, Barbara Groner, drove from Santa Monica to swim at the pool every day for 15 years before she died last year. Many of Barbara’s fellow swimmers cared for her after she was diagnosed with colon cancer. Albrecht is confident that more money can be raised. Ilene Cassidy, co-founder of FTP, told the Council that the pool was a special place where lifelong friendships were formed. ‘With the loss of this pool in Temescal Canyon, the Conservancy has destroyed a longstanding essential gathering place and a base of social support,’ Cassidy said, adding that the organization has found contractors willing to repair the pool at a reasonable cost and make it ‘green.’ ‘We could and should have the pool up and running by mid-summer,’ said Cassidy, a masters swimmer at the pool for 26 years.   Albrecht unveiled FTP’s new logo, a life preserver circling a shovel and grass, with the phrase ‘Rescue the Pool.’ Resident Lee Kovel, a partner in the advertising agency Kovel/Fuller in Culver City, voluntarily created the logo, which will be used on yard signs, T-shirts and sweatshirts. ‘Our goal is simply to restore this jewel in the park,’ Albrecht said, noting the organization has about 2,200 members and is growing. After hearing the presentation, Council member Peter Fisher responded, ‘What is most impressive to me is the support [Friends of Temescal Pool] has received. To me, that is the community speaking about what they want.’ Member Gil Dembo offered his support, saying ‘This pool creates an asset to the community.’ However, members Barbara Kohn and Flo Elfant questioned whether Temescal Gateway Park (a state park) was the appropriate location for a community pool. Additionally, member Harry Sondheim expressed concern that Palisades Charter High School representatives were not at the meeting. The school hopes to begin constructing the Maggie Gilbert Aquatic Center this spring. The center will be open to the public during non-school hours, so ‘they have a stake in this,’ Sondheim said. Sondheim asked to table the motion until PaliHi Executive Director Amy Dresser-Held or swim coach Maggie Nance could attend. The Council voted down his suggestion. Member Laura Chung argued that if PaliHi school officials had a stance on the issue, they would have voiced it by now. Jason Lemire, a new Council member representing Pali Blues Soccer Club, said there is always a need for recreational facilities, so he thinks there would be a demand for two pools. Following the debate, Council Chair Richard G. Cohen appointed member Kurt Toppel to head a committee that will work with stakeholders to resurrect the pool.
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