Waiting to get wet

Clark County public swimming pools opened for the season over the Memorial Day Weekend, but the Sunrise area's long-awaited aquatics complex won't be following suit until later in the summer at the earliest.

The Hollywood Aquatics Center, 1650 S. Hollywood Blvd., is part of the Hollywood Community Park, which includes the Hollywood Recreation Center on the foothills of Frenchman Mountain.

The aquatics center was slated to open this summer, but county officials have revised that date to late summer or early fall.

The aquatics center is set to have multiple pools, including an indoor 25-yard by 25-meter competitive pool, a side teaching pool and a 7,368-square-foot outdoor activity pool. The indoor pool will feature mostly glass walls on the west side of the building providing an expansive view of the valley.

"The best view is in the morning when the sun is coming up," said Spencer Syphos, assistant supervisor for the project. "It lights up all the buildings on the Strip."

The view was a major consideration when the site was selected.

"During the design phase, we looked at a lot of different sites on the campus," said Peter Umoh, design and construction administrator for Clark County. "We decided this was the best spot because of the view and because it would showcase the facility, making it very visible from the street."

The indoor facility is designed for classes, water exercise and to host high school swimming competitions. The enclosed portion of the complex will include locker rooms, restrooms, a training room and administrative space.

The outdoor activity pool is set to include a beach-style entry, water play toys, a lazy river and two water slides. From the top of the water slide platform, 22 feet above the pool, swimmers will find a commanding view of the valley and Frenchman Mountain. A wrought iron fence will surround 17,000 square feet of pool deck surrounding the pool. The fence was designed to protect the pool while still allowing a more or less unimpeded view.

The aquatic center will have separate pumping and filtration equipment for each pool with additional pumps for the water slide and the lazy river. Syphos pointed out two deep holes in the area between the indoor and outdoor pools.

"Those are surge chambers," he explained. "When you've got 30 people jumping in a pool, that water's got to go somewhere. It'll go from there through filters and pumps and then back into the pool."

The project, which had a construction bid of $13 million, has been slowed by a number of factors, including the wind. The site is on an exposed hillside, with no nearby buildings to slow the gusts. On particularly blustery days, workers have had to shift their tasks, as trying to move 4-foot-by-8-foot panels in howling wind can be treacherous.

"As with any construction project, there have been challenges," Umoh said "But we've dealt with the problems as they came. Our number one priority is safety for the contractors."

The Hollywood Aquatics Center is scheduled to remain open year-round. However, because the outdoor activity pool will be open only in the summer, it's possible residents will have to wait until next summer to enjoy it. One person who's looking forward to enjoying the outdoor pool is Syphos.

"I'm going to be the first person down the water slide," he joked. "Someone's got to do it."

Contact Sunrise and Whitney View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 380-4532.