City Staff: Elk Grove Needs a 20-Acre Aquatic Center

There simply isn't enough pool space in Elk Grove for all of the city's swimmers, city and recreation staff say.

The city is making space in its plans for a competition-focused aquatic center, and the Elk Grove City Council will discuss the direction for the center at its meeting Wednesday evening.

The city received five bids from outside companies hoping to operate any center eventually built by the city, but a staff report now says Elk Grove needs more space than originally planned and urges the council to toss out all five proposals and start over with a goal of building a 20-acre aquatic center.

There's only one problem: There isn't enough space at the planned site of the civic center, along Elk Grove Boulevard between Big Horn Blvd and Laguna Springs Drive, for both a 20-acre aquatic center and a .

"If Elk Grove truly wants to create a destination facility, the proposed five-acre [aquatic center] site will be insufficient," the staff report states. "A larger aquatics center can be accommodated at the if the City Council chooses to either discontinue pursuit of a altogether or to pursue a ball field complex at a site other than Civic Center Park."

The Cosumnes Community Services District could provide enough ball fields for a national tournament by adding lights to two more of its existing fields, .

CSD official: Elk Grove could use more competition pools

The Cosumnes Community Services District has been providing places for Elk Grove residents to swim for 26 years, but it hasn't kept up with the need for competition swimming pools, General Manager Jeff Ramos said Wednesday.

"Does Elk Grove need another pool? We would definitely say yes," Ramos said by phone. "We think that for the competition [swimmers, such as] the Piranhas, the high schools and their swim programs, there definitely is not enough pool space for everybody."

He said a competition aquatic center featuring an Olympic-size pool and a dive pool wouldn't compete with the or the , because those facilities are focused on recreation.

But that could change if the city adds water slides or other similar features to its plan.

"Honestly, I don't know what's included in that 20 acres," Ramos said.

He added that he hopes the Cosumnes Community Services District will be chosen to operate the city's new aquatic center, and said the district could easily rise to the task of attracting large-scale tournaments to Elk Grove.

The issue will be discussed at Wednesday's city council meeting:

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Elk Grove City Council meeting
6 p.m. Wednesday
8400 Laguna Palms Way

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