Midwest City pool opening delayed

Reno Swim and Slide set to open in late June due to maintenance work

By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon

Summer swim season will be a little shorter than usual.

The Reno Swim and Slide pool will open about one month later than normal due to maintenance work, according to Midwest City officials.

The pool is expected to open in late June. The season typically runs from Memorial Day weekend until Labor Day.

The city is replacing the pool liner and refinishing the slide. Workers also repaired damage to the concrete walls of the pool that was not discovered until the old liner was removed.

Midwest City contracted with RenoSys, an Indiana company that specializes in swimming pools, for the liner project. RenoSys was the only bidder on the project and told city staff that it would need extra time to complete the work, due to staffing limitations.

“We only got one bid on the project and the issue was they didn’t have an installation crew available to send us until now,” said Josh Ryan, Midwest City parks and recreation director. “If we had approved the bid in the winter, it doesn’t mean they would have been able to get to it any sooner.”

Installation of the new liner is expected to begin next week.

The pool liner was last replaced 17 years ago. A liner has a lifespan of about 10-15 years.

Ryan said they considered resealing the pool instead of replacing the liner, but it would have been more costly.

“The quotes we received to finish the pool were about $500,000 more than replacing the liner,” he said.

The city will pay about $282,000 for the maintenance work. RenoSys’ bid for the pool liner was about $237,000. The city will pay about $35,000 to finish the slide and $10,000 for concrete work that has been completed.

Midwest City is expected to consider the long-term future of the Reno Swim and Slide as part of an upcoming parks master plan.

“Not a lot of cities have pools like this anymore and we’ll look at if we need to build a new pool, a splash pad or something else,” Ryan said.

Midwest City is still hiring pool staff for this summer with a “critical need” for lifeguards. Pool staff will still be able to work before the pool opens, helping prepare the facility for the season.

For more information about pool staff openings, visit midwestcityok.org and click the “Jobs” tab.