Earlier this year, Dallas was looking at an approximately $36.5 million gap in its upcoming budget, sending City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert and her team looking for areas where they can scale back. Two of the places they have identified for savings are no surprise: a roughly 2% cut in funding for parks and recreation, and trims to libraries.
Both community pools and local libraries are beloved parts of neighborhoods across the city, but it’s smart to be realistic about how these services are used and to keep the bigger picture of the city’s fiscal health in mind.
The Park and Recreation department will look to cut about $3 million. This will include decommissioning some legacy pools, reducing hours at recreation centers and eliminating some positions within the department.
Opinion
This newspaper reported that pools saw a decline in the number of residents attending this year, in part because the city was forced to reduce hours of operation.
The reality is that Dallas’ legacy pools are aging. The newest pool was built in 1975, with the oldest dating back to 1947, according to the city’s aquatic master plan. With new apartments being built, many of which have pools, and new private pool facilities popping up across the city, the trickle of visitors to community pools is slowing.
That’s not to say pools aren’t important to our community. Some draw diverse groups of people, provide swim lessons for kids and adults and serve as recreation hubs. We don’t want to see them disappear, but a facility that only receives a few visitors a day doesn’t warrant the effort to keep it open. Meanwhile, the city has opened a large number of aquatic centers with more recreation options that, in some locations, include opportunities for swim lessons.
Libraries are seeing a similar fate. Tolbert told us that under the regional library plan, which would consolidate the library system and designate centralized branches with longer hours, up to four libraries could be impacted.
While some libraries may be empty for hours at a time, others host tutoring programs, computer labs and story times for children. Consolidation could allow more of these offerings to flourish in well-used branches while reducing costs.
Both pools and libraries are important third spaces in Dallas. These public places let residents interact with neighbors for free or at a low cost. We don’t want to see them disappear, but centralized locations with more programming and resources are a more efficient way to retain access while not wasting money on services that are underutilized.
Change is never easy, especially when it comes to well-loved places that hold memories for many. But thinking about how to preserve these community centers in a way that makes sense for the city’s budget while maintaining what residents love is a smart move.