Despite DC 37 Objections
New City Pool Going Private

By REUVEN BLAU

The Parks Department is in the final stages of privatizing 45 full-time Lifeguard and pool maintenance positions at its newly designed Olympic-sized pool in Flushing Meadow Park, after weeks of negotiations with union officials failed to produce an agreement.

PRIVATE POOL: The Parks Department is wrapping up its plan to privatize 45 full-time Lifeguard and pool maintenance jobs at its newly designed Olympic-sized pool in Flushing Meadow Park after talks with union officials broke down. The facility, which also includes an NHL-standard ice rink, is scheduled to open in December.

Parks First Deputy Commissioner Liam Kavanagh said that the agency was working to complete a $1.2 million a year contract with USA Pools, a Roswell, Georgia-based company that runs similar facilities across the nation.

The Queens center, which also includes an NHL-standard ice rink, is scheduled to open in December.

First Pool Farm-Out

The contract must still be approved by the City Comptroller's Office and the company must pass background checks. Barring an unforeseen problem, the deal will mark the first time a city-run pool will be operated by a private firm. Union Lifeguards and maintenance workers run the city's 52 other pools.

Mr. Kavanagh and another city official acknowledged that the Office of Labor Relations had been negotiating with the appropriate District Council 37 locals.

"DC 37 asked us to consider a more traditional city-operated facility," Mr. Kavanagh said. "We understood each other, but we could not come to an agreement soon enough that would allow us to capture some of the efficiencies that USA Pools would have. So we decided to go ahead with the USA pool offer."

New York City Lifeguard Local 461 President Franklin Paige and Lifeguard Supervisors Local 508 President Peter Stein did not return calls seeking comment. Mr. Kavanagh pointed out that many Parks facilities are currently operated by private companies, including ice skating rinks and several recreation centers. "It's pretty well established that the private sector does that well and that it's a model that's succeeded," he remarked.

Unions, however, oppose privatizing, arguing that putting contract hires into positions traditionally held by civil servants creates a workforce with fewer rights and less accountability.

Doesn't Add Up

The details of the proposed five-to-seven-year contract with USA Pools remain unclear, including how the company plans to pay the salaries of the estimated 45 employees with only $1.2 million a year while earning a profit. "USA Pools intends to contract for cleaning and security services, some of which will not require full-time employees," said Parks spokeswoman Abby Lootens.

The department maintained that the pool's membership fees will go to the city. But one insider familiar with the negotiations said that the private company will likely get a share of that revenue under the accord.

Mr. Kavanagh said the Queens pool will be a unique recreation center. "This is a new facility and different than ever operated before," he remarked. "We view it as a place where serious swimmers will come and a place to host high-competition events."

Cites Experience

USA Pools, he continued, has expertise in managing such places. "They have a lot of experience both on the operation end and on the programmatic end of running a center," he added.

The $60-million pool project will provide a year-round facility for competitive and recreational use. The 110,000-square-foot facility is uniquely designed with a cable-supported roof system that will allow for potential expansion for a larger venue, according to the city.

The pool and diving tank will be on the second floor, with views of the park. It will have a movable hydraulic floor, creating the potential to have recreational swimming and competitive events simultaneously. Mr. Kavanagh said the city plans to closely monitor the arrangement with USA Pools. "We don't have experience with this company, so it's a little bit of an unknown," he observed. "We want this facility to succeed. It's not like we are turning this over to a private company and turning our backs on it. It's important that this facility really serve the public."