For now, the Hildred T. Moore Aquatics Complex will continue to operate under its current schedule.

During its meeting Monday, the City Council unanimously voted to reduce the city’s pools hours of operation from about 75 hours a week to about 40 hours a week. The city’s Recreation Advisory Committee recommended the reduction in hours. The council’s vote came after several people, including one non-city resident, voiced their support for keeping the pool open and/or not reducing its hours of operation. Their comments echoed those of about 18 people who voice their support for the city pool during the council’s May 11 public hearing on the upcoming budget.

The council had been considering closing the pool or reducing its hours of operation. The pool costs the city more to operate than the revenue it produces for the city. Pool critics say taxpayers should not subsidize a facility that loses money and is not used by most city residents. Pool supporters say the pool provides health benefits to those who use it and provides a place for local swim teams to compete.

“I think it would be our best to do the wishes of the citizens of this city and those citizens who use the facility,” Pitt said during discussion of the advisory’s committee’s recommendation concerning the pool’s hours.

“Mr. Mayor, I concur with the concerns of the citizens … but later on this afternoon we are going to adopt a budget, and that budget was molded on the concept that we were going to reduce the hours of operation at the pool. We have before us a proposed schedule that would bring about that hours of reduction but still have the pool open for 40 hours a week for the use of the general public,” Mercer said. “I think it’s incumbent upon us to stick with the budgeted numbers we have or either we’re going to have to sit down and revise the budget. … The monies just are not in the budget to operate the pool on the schedule we had in the past. We had long deliberations and we agreed what we were going to do. I think we need to do it.”

Councilman Richard Brooks said the council should follow the advisory’s committee’s suggestion to reduce pool hours.

After City Manager Brian Alligood explained the upcoming budget retained funding to operate the pool under its existing schedule, Councilman Larry Beeman’s motion to reconsider reducing the pool’s hours was approved by a 3-1 vote, with Mercer voting against it. Brooks and Pitt sided with Beeman’s move to reconsider the council’s previous action on the pool. Beeman, Brooks and Pitt then voted to not reduce the pool’s hours, with Mercer voting against the measure.

The council also voted to accept the advisory committee’s recommendation to form a committee to study the aquatics center and make recommendations concerning its operation and maintenance and analyze community support of the facility.