Providence Swim Commission Report Never Fully Implemented
Wednesday, July 08, 2015
The report from the Providence Swim Commission, which was issued in the spring of 2014 following the controversial closing of the Davey Lopes pool -- but before it reopened last summer -- has seen only a number of its suggestions implemented by the city.
In the opinion of some community leaders, as the report called on Providence to be a "model of municipal swimming policy" -- that is not enough.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST"The fact that the [Davey Lopes] pool is there and it exists, I give the city a "C" for what they've done with the report," said former State Representative Ray Rickman, who had been involved in the Swim Empowerment movement following the closure of Davey Lopes to address the specific needs for access to swimming and education in Rhode Island’s African American community. "There are twenty things [the city] needs to do, and from what I see, it's 10% of what's needed. You need twelve apples, you have none -- and they give you two, and declare success."
Deb Schimberg, who headed up the Swim Commission, spoke with GoLocal about a number of recommendations that had been heeded from the report, but recognized more needed to be done.
"My sense is there is plenty more to do," said Schimberg, who noted that while the commission no longer is formerly organized, that she recently met with Elorza staff members, including Director of Recreation Michael Stephens and Director of Operations Alan Sepe.
"We have in this report a road map as to what can be done next, it's great groundwork that needs to be implemented. Baltimore, Philadelphia, Chicago, all of these places have swim programs, we should too," said Schimberg. "It's a matter of a civil rights issue."
Commission Origins, Accomplishments
The formation of a Swim Commission was announced in October 2013, when then-Councilman Davian Sanchez fought to keep Davey Lopes from being demolished, after he called the closure politically motivated by then-Mayor Angel Taveras
"Apart from the reopening of the Davey Lopes pool -- which has been great for the neighborhood -- I haven't seen much follow-through," said Sanchez on Tuesday. "It was a big subject at the time because of the impact on the community, but putting together the commission I think was politically motivated."
Former Council President Michael Solomon, who called for the swim commission report, and Providence Mayor Angel Taveras, who had shuttered the pool to begin with -- lost their races for Mayor and Governor, respectively, in 2014.
"I think we should absolutely revisit it the commission report and its recommendations," said City Council President Luis Aponte on Tuesday.
Schimberg -- and the city -- pointed to what they said were changes that have been made since the report.
"We had a consultant who came in last year, who made some recommendations that were implemented," said Schimberg, noting that the pool directors were brought together to discuss best practices, and that per the consultant's recommendations, the pools now have additional life jackets on hand, the drains have covers -- and lifeguards are now are Red Cross trained in swimming instruction.
The city is offering lessons this summer as part of its recreation program
"We need to do a better job of getting the word out," said Schimberg. "Both about the things we've done so far that had been part the report -- and things we still have to do."
The city noted that since the report was issued, that it has taken a number actions, some of which were recommended by the commission, as well as others that were not.
According to the Elorza spokesperson David Ortiz, the city has: compiled a pedophile picture list; continued swim lessons; changed ages from 12 to 10 without a parent or guardian as long he/she pass swim test; updated pool registration cards; recruited more lifeguards at each pool and recreation paid for some recertification; added safety measures to 2 large pools by separating areas with new wristband for swimmers; upgraded front desk signage with signs both English and Spanish; mandated core staff to be CPR certified paid by recreation department; new rules for all pools were approved by the law department; each pool has received 5 more lifejacket going from 20 last year to 25 this year; replaced drains; depth marking on inside of pool; fixed ladders; and put up no diving signs.
Need for Numbers, Best Practices
Schimberg said that more of the items identified in the report, including enhanced partnerships and funding streams, still need to be addressed.
"One of the goals was to operate pools utilizing modern best practices designed to promote financial sustainability," said Schimberg. "We have a "friends" group for the parks in the city, the pools need to be seen similarly as a city resource."
Items outlined as recommendations in the report that have not been acted on include: the call for private-public partnerships; the creation of an escrow account equal to 10% of the city-wide pool operation budget for non-routine maintenance and capital improvement; assessing the feasibility of opening the existing indoor pool at Davey Lopes;and creating a master plan for maximizing city owned and community based organization pools .
In addition, the report called for "following USA Swimming best practices format by making a shift to a more entrepreneurial model which seeks to maximize the use of each pool," including providing competitive and adult swim lesson opportunities, and pool rentals.
The report recommended a schedule for the pools to be open from 11 to 7 and to include adult swim instruction; they are currently open from 11 to 5.
"We're still getting numbers for the number of city youth who are signing up for swim lessons this summer," said Ortiz, of the number of youth who had signed up for lessons to date in 2015. "The Mayor strongly supports the full implementation of the Swim Commission report."
Community activist Leah Williams Metts, who helped rally the community behind reopening the Davey Lopes pool, said that she believed that Elorza is on the right track.
"It has been one year, although It feels like it was just yesterday. As a community we should never forget what it took to get this community pool opened for our children. Scince Mayor Elorza has taken office, the city of Providence has put more of a focus on children 13-17 years of age," said Metts. "I believe the Save The Davey Lopes Pool initiative shined a bright light on the importance of giving children in this age bracket more recreational opportunities."
Related Slideshow: Timeline of the Davey Lopes Recreation Center Pool Controversy
The controversy surrounding the Joslin Recreation Center Pool closure is just the latest city pool issue involving the Taveras administration. The pool at the Davey Lopes Recreation Center has been a highly contested issue since its closure in July of 2013.
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