Generous donations from past and present New Carlisle residents have raised more than $1,000 in support of the New Carlisle swimming pool since a Go Fund Me page was created last week. City Mayor Mike Lowrey, who has been a longtime advocate of keeping the city’s summertime amenity, started the page to help offset any losses incurred by the pool this year after council members voted five to two to keep it open for another season.

The pool has been a popular topic of discussion in recent months as City Council reviewed the projected 2016 budget in early February and tackled the decision of whether or not to open it again this summer. Councilmen Ethan Reynolds and William Lindsey voted against it, but Lowrey said he has received positive feedback from other councilmen about his drive to not only keep the pool, but make it more profitable as well.

“I don’t think our job should stop after a council meeting,” Lowrey said of a councilman’s duty to the citizens of New Carlisle.
Since last year, the Mayor has been an outspoken supporter of keeping the pool open for local families to enjoy, often speaking passionately on the subject during council meetings. In addition to providing a healthy and affordable form of entertainment for local families by staying open, Lowrey has said that he fears what will become of the site should it ever be closed, implying that it could potentially go the way of the Madison Street School and become both a financial drain and an eyesore for the city.

Lowrey announced in last month’s budget session that while the pool has never been a real money-maker for the city, its losses were significantly reduced last year through careful management. He said that in 2014, the pool lost an estimated $40,000, but with the diligence of pool managers and staff, lost only $5,000 in the 2015 season.

Reynolds said although he voted against opening the pool this year, he intends to do what he can to see that it functions at its maximum potential.
“The reason I voted no is pretty simple,” said Reynolds. “We all made promises…we all said if the pool loses money, we’ll close it,” he said.
“Because they passed it, I’ll do what I can now to make sure it’s successful,” Reynolds said, adding that he even plans to purchase a volleyball net and become lifeguard-certified so that he can help fill in if needed.

Reynolds noted that he was glad to see someone from council taking action in an attempt to support the pool since voting to keep it open.
To further improve the city’s losses from the pool this summer, Lowrey created a Go Fund Me page last week so that those who also support the city pool can donate toward its operations. Since its creation a week ago Wednesday, generous donors have given more than $1,000 in support of the swimming pool, which Lowrey said is overwhelming.

“I want to stress a huge thanks to everyone who has donated and shown their support,” he said, marveling at the number of $100 donations he has received thus far.
A former New Carlisle resident who now resides in South Carolina was one of the many who gave $100 to the pool’s donation initiative. Lowrey said this was especially touching because the donor used to work at the pool when it was known as The Dip and Dive. He extended his sincere appreciation to those who have found it possible to give their hard-earned dollars toward the support of the community attraction, noting that the funds would be used to paint the building and possibly updating the restrooms and changing rooms.

Lowrey said the New Carlisle Pool was first opened on Memorial Day in 1968 with 600 people in attendance. Originally named Wunderland Fun by its original owners Joe and Anna Wunder, the pool is now owned by the city.

“Over the years the New Carlisle Pool has had its good seasons and bad, as you can expect with any outdoor seasonal attraction,” Lowrey wrote on the funding site. “After all these years the New Carlisle Pool has had some updates to the way the pool water is heated and some updates to the pool itself but the facilities like the restrooms, concession stand and office space are mostly still original and are in need of some updating.”

He said that over the years, the city has focused most of the allocated funds to the pool itself in keeping it structurally safe and operational, and in doing this, the rest of the pool facilities have fallen behind in updates.