Charlottesville seeks firm to manage two outdoor pools

The City of Charlottesville owns two outdoor pools but is looking to outsource the work of operating them to a private company. 

“Onesty Family Aquatic Center and Washington Park Pool are seasonal outdoor pools that operate between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day annually,” reads a request for proposals sent out on November 8. 

Since the pandemic, the city has at times struggled to find enough lifeguards to keep the two pools open simultaneously and to also have enough people to watch over the indoor Smith Aquatic Center.  The city has previously contracted with a company to manage Onesty and this would turn over management of both amenities.

“The Contractor will be in charge of staffing all lifeguards, full-time, and seasonal employees,” reads the statement of needs in the RFP. “This shall include the creation and management of employee schedules and coverage.” 

The contractor will also have to developer a plan for emergency action including emergency procedures, an emergency weather plan, accident and injury reporting, fire procedures, and active attacker protocols. 

The contractor will also have to run the concession stand and this can be sub-contracted to another firm. Alcohol sales are prohibited. 

Over 23,050 people attended Onesty in the summer 2024 season compared to 14,589 at Washington Park. 

The successful company will report to the director of Parks and Recreation or their designee. 

Admission fees for city pools are a source of revenue, but income was reduced during the pandemic when hours were reduced with $56,308 collected in FY2021. That increased to $231,825 in FY2022 and went up again in FY2023. The adopted budget for FY24 assumed $476,749 in revenues, but the FY2025 budget lowered that amount to $296,270. The audit for FY2024 will yield the actual numbers.

However, the aquatics department costs more than that to operate. The actual costs for the city were $1,069,108 in FY2021, $1,730,558 in FY22, and $2,191,324 in FY23.

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