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What improvements are we getting with this project? The new facility will provide membership with a new and expanded fitness room, modernized & handicap accessible locker rooms, 2 family changing rooms, a community courtyard, a larger pool & hot tub, an attached toddler friendly wading pool, and a handicap lift for access to both the hot tub and pool.

 

The modern design of the structure’s walls and roof are tailored specifically for indoor pools to prevent the failures seen with the old structure. Efficiencies gained in the ventilation, water filtration, and water heating will be a cost savings in the day-to-day maintenance. 

 

The design of the utility room on the outer perimeter of the pool structure allows for access to mechanicals without having to come through the building with supplies and chemicals.

 

What will the new pool capacity be?

Michigan regulations for commercial pools state: Pools 5 feet or less in depth, the maximum capacity is 7 people per 100 square feet. Pools over 5 feet in depth, the capacity is 4 people per 100 square feet. The new proposed PIHA pool will be ~1800 square feet would be 126 people. This is significantly higher than the previous

capacity.

 

What are the depths of the new pool? The new pool will have a depth range of 3 foot on each end and 5 foot in the middle. This will allow the entire area of the pool to be utilized, allowing for more members to be using the pool at the same time. Newer commercial pool designs avoid diving boards and deep ends due to liability issues, as well as to maximize the number of swimmers. The shallower pool will be much more efficient to heat and filter.

 

How does the pool design benefit young families? The pool committee strove to include the desires of all the varied needs of membership, including young and old. The pool itself has a shallow safe area for toddlers to play. The newly designed locker rooms have private family changing rooms with changing tables.

 

What about handicap access?

The survey responses of membership

were emphatic in their desire to have better handicap access to the pool.

As such, a lift was strategically placed in the design to service both the pool and the hot tub. Also, by replacing the outdated locker rooms, two family changing rooms have been added to accommodate families with small

children (e.g. fathers/grandfathers with young daughters/granddaughters or mothers/grandmothers with young sons/grandsons, or couples in which one partner requires assistance).

 

Will we lose the hot tub? In our surveys of membership, one of the “must-haves” was a hot tub. The new hot tub will be slightly larger than the existing, at 10' x 12', and will have handicap access via a lift.

 

Will lap swimming be allowed? Lap swimming was another “must have”

in our survey responses from membership. To accommodate lap swimmers, the new pool length was extended from 50 feet to 60 feet. The width was increased from 23 feet to 30 feet to allow for more lanes of

swimmers. Also, the entry steps have been placed into one corner, so as

not to be an obstacle for lap swimmers.

 

Will the hot tub capacity change? The new hot tub is slightly larger than the old hot tub and therefore membership can anticipate similar rules regarding capacity.

 

What rule changes could we expect? An increase in the total number of swimmers at one time is the major anticipated change. The other rules in place should remain the same. Please refer to the website’s “Facility Use

Rules” for reference.

 

What will happen to the old wood exterior decks? The old decks will be removed and a ground level concrete or stone pavers patio will replace them.

 

When will construction begin? There must be a vote by membership approving a special assessment to cover the cost of construction before any contracts are signed to commence construction.

 

How long will the construction take? The construction is anticipated to

take about 1.5 to 2 years from tear-down of the current structure to opening

of the new facilities.

 

How does the special assessment get approved? A meeting of membership will be scheduled to vote upon the special assessment. Notice of the meeting to membership must be announced at a minimum of 30 days in advance. Members may either vote in person or by proxy. For the Special Assessment to be approved, two thirds of those attending or voting by proxy must vote for it.

 

How will this new facility be paid for? According to Section 4 of the

Restrictive Covenants, the Association may levy a special assessment in

any given year for capital improvements. Over the last several years, Presque Isle Harbor Association has been setting funds aside in a capital account due to input from the long-term planning committee. For the entire

project, it will be a combination of available funds and funds from a one-

time special assessment. As the funds from the special assessment will come in over time, a construction loan will be needed to have the entire funds available to pay for the construction.

 

What is the anticipated cost of the project? While firm costs of the

project will not be known until the project is formally bid on by contractors,

the Architects have reviewed the project with a local commercial contractor

in Alpena to estimate construction costs. At this point, the board is highly

confident in the total cost of the project.

 

How much will the special assessment cost a member for this

project?

 

Payment Option 1 (Paid in Full): A primary lot one-time assessment of

$900.00 and a secondary lot one-time assessment of $450.00.

 

Payment Option 2 (3-Year Payment Plan): A primary lot one-time

assessment of $1,000.00 and a secondary lot one-time assessment of

$500.00 payable in equal installments over a three (3) year period.

 

Is the special assessment a one-time fee, or an annual fee? In

accordance with the Restrictive Covenants, a special assessment is a one- time assessment. It is a separate assessment from the annual

assessment.

 

If a lot owner sells the lot, who will be expected to pay the special

assessment? The seller and buyer may negotiate who pays the special

assessment at the time of sale, but the non-payment of the special assessment will be considered an outstanding debt to the Association, and member benefits and facility usage will be withheld until the lot owner is a

member in good standing.

 

Why can’t the current pool be fixed? The current pool is over 53 years old and has outlived its useful life. The shell of the pool is no longer sound and would require complete removal along with all the buried plumbing. The consensus of contractors and architects is it would be more costly to repair the existing pool and remove and replace all the structures supporting the pool.

 

Can the new pool go in the same place as the current pool? Due to newer codes regarding increased setbacks from the walls, a new pool put in the same room would be significantly smaller.

 

Won’t the new pool be more expensive to run? No, due to the inefficiencies of the current pool from leaking, difficulties in getting parts for outdated heating and filtering equipment, sanitation chemical losses, and improper and inadequate ventilation, the newly designed pool will have significant cost savings in day-to-day operations.

What will happen to the old fitness room? This will be a separate project from the Pool / Fitness Center project and discussions will be held to decide upon new uses for this space. Possibly a space geared towards the needs of the adolescent age group was one suggestion.