Swim Clubs Struggle to Stay Afloat

The two pools became overwhelmed by a growing backlog of maintenance needs and a dwindling roll of members to help pay for it all. So many other pools in that part of the county are struggling to survive that Fairfax Supervisor Sharon S. Bulova (D-Braddock) convened a "pools roundtable" with representatives of more than a dozen area clubs to talk about what the county could do to help. Among the recommendations was to encourage private clubs to apply for a reduced property tax rate under a new state law that allows them to do so, Bulova said. About 60 such pools qualify, according to the county's tax office.

A similar effort has occurred in Maryland, where lawmakers passed legislation two years ago to allow counties to reduce taxes for private, nonprofit pools. Forty-eight pools are eligible in Montgomery County; in Prince George's County, the total number is unknown, but three private pools have applied for the benefit, officials there said.

Bulova said she was motivated to help pools as part of a larger effort to address neighborhood decline in her district.

"Neighborhood pools are part of the fabric of the community," Bulova said. "They are places where people gather, where people come to get to know each other and each other's children. The secret to a safe community is a community where people know each other and look out for each other. So while these are private institutions, there is an important role for county government to support and help these pools as well as the neighborhoods they are in."

Some pools have managed to right themselves with creative financing or newfangled approaches to membership drives. About a year ago, Village West Pool in West Springfield leased property to a cellphone-tower company to help finance a few months of operating expenses as well as a $180,000 renovation.

"Village West would not have opened in May of 2007 without that tower," said the pool's president, Krystal Whitehouse, who added that the club's dwindling membership fees would not have covered the water bill or the management contract. "It's going to be another five years before the pool is fully solvent, but it will happen. It will be a very viable pool."

Other pools have sold land to builders, or, in the case of Annandale Swim & Tennis Club, leased a parcel to a Wendy's restaurant. Others have used marketing ideas, such as Wi-Fi Internet service or waiving first-year dues. Still others have reached out to immigrant families, sending fliers in Spanish or exploring themed events such as Mexican night.

North Springfield has reached out to immigrants, drawing from the neighborhoods around nearby North Springfield Elementary School and its diverse population, said Nelson, the pool's president. Arrate, the Salvadoran mother, has helped translate fliers into Spanish.

The pool explored the possibility of a Muslim swim hour to accommodate families whose faith forbids women to be seen in swimsuits in public. Nelson said he dropped the idea after concluding that it would be legally inappropriate to schedule only female lifeguards for duty during those hours, or to demand that they cover up to accommodate Muslim tradition.

In the end, pools that have come into a windfall are doing the best, but some pool officials said there is hope even for those without that luxury.

Todd Livick, president of Parliament Pool in the Fairfax neighborhood of Kings Park, has helped turn the club's fortunes around with a careful budget, a rigorous volunteer culture and a one-time fee last year to cover badly needed repairs. The risk is that the fee will scare off old members. The alternative, Livick said, is closing. And the question remaining is how much time that fee has bought his pool.

"I'm not a big fan of nickel-and-diming our members every other year," Livick said. "But you know, we haven't figured out exactly what we're going to do."