2025 Wrap Up, Upcoming Repairs and 2026 Dues

Take a seat and grab a drink, this is gonna be a LONG post! :-)

First off, thanks to everyone who volunteered their time and/or resources to help us work towards making the pool an asset for our community that we can enjoy using. We got a ton of help from people with landscaping especially but also with some repairs that needed to be done.

Some of you know that the current pool board took on the responsibility of managing the pool after years and years of "just getting by." While we do truly appreciate the effort that the prior board members put into keeping the pool open, there was a lot that needed to be done to get things back into peak shape. While some of those things were easily visible, many other things were hidden from sight.

Here's what we were able to accomplish this year:

• Major landscaping improvements, including repairing and restarting the sprinkler system

• Reopen the second bathroom and cleaned up both

• Replaced the mostly non-functional security camera system with a functional, modern system

• Replaced and relocated the incredibly hazardous electrical panel

• Leveled several concrete slabs that had become tripping hazards

• Removed and replaced damaged/crumbling concrete

• Cleaned out and made some repairs to the drain line on the pool deck

• Replaced two broken umbrellas

• Replaced the parking lot light with efficient (and functional!) LED lights

• Partially upgraded the chlorination system to a saltwater chlorinator

• Brand new pool cover coming this fall

• Got the new website up and running along with a dedicated email server

• Almost fully collected on all past due accounts (over $2500 collected!)

• Added over 20 new members

While we were able to make a tremendous amount of progress this year, there's still some major improvements that need to be tackled. During the season, we heard many of you comment on several things that had become areas of concern. Just after the season ended, we reached out to several contractors to get some bids (Bison Construction, Icon Pools and Country Club Pool and Spa). Initially, we had only requested bids for replacing the plaster, tile and coping around the pool. Bison and Icon both said that the only way to smooth out the pool would be to completely replace the plaster and they provided bids for that scope of work that came in north of $70,000. The third contractor, Country Club Pool and Spa (CCPS) is the same company that we use for the county mandated chemical testing and management. CCPS also started the conversion process on the chlorination system. They had came to us with a more comprehensive plan that would not only solve a lot of our current and future issues but would also allow us to do more with less.

CCPS provided us a bid that would accomplish the following:

• Smooth out the pool surface without replacing the plaster

• Polish and seal the pool surface to, hopefully, get another 10+ years out of the existing plaster

• Replace the old pumps with a single, high volume variable speed pump that will help us reduce electrical and chemical costs long term

• Replace the sand filtration systems with cartridge filters that will reduce future maintenance costs and keep the water cleaner

• Complete the salt chlorination upgrade by adding in another chlorinator

• Install an automated chemical management system to help keep the water from getting cloudy and dirty as well as helping to extend the life of the mechanical systems

• New water-line tile around the entire pool

• New coping around the entire pool.

Some of those items are things that need to be done somewhat urgently while some of those are things that will need to be done in the next few years. CCPS is willing to provide us a discount on these items if we tackle them as part of a single bid. As you can imagine, even with discount pricing, this is going to be expensive. The total cost of the bid was $63,500.

At this point, the pool association doesn't have the reserves to cover this amount in full. Our dues had been steady at $175 from 1999 until this year. If the dues had kept pace with inflation over that time, they would have been $340 this year, and we likely would have had plenty saved up to cover this cost with some extra leftover. Unfortunately, dues didn't keep up with expenses and with the repairs that are needed, we will be needing to collect additional dues this year.

For the 2025 season, we were able to offset some of the additional expenses by bringing on new members and charging an initiation fee. Right now, we feel as though the membership count is in a good spot, so we will not have that additional revenue available to the same extent it was this year.

For this season, we are having to raise dues to $240 and will be adding an additional assessment of $160. This will raise enough funds for us to fully cover the costs outlined above without having to take on debt. It will also allow us to begin setting aside funds for future needs including things like new furniture, replacing the pool deck drain line and, eventually, fully replacing the plaster. That last piece is the big expense we're hoping to delay with the bid from CCPS. With bids for that work coming in around $75,000 this year, we're assuming that in 10-12 years when it MUST be done, that it will likely cost upwards of $100,000. We don't want to leave the future pool board and members in the same situation then as we are in now. To keep things on track, we need to proceed with increased dues and an assessment.

We recognize that this is a significant cost that we all have to bear. To help accommodate, the board voted to make a couple of changes. First, invoices are being sent out the first week of October. Second, dues will not need to be paid in full until February 28th, 2026. This will allow our members to better budget for the expense as well as provide an opportunity to make installment payments if needed. Lastly, because we pushed back the due date, we also voted to move the annual meeting to first Sunday of March for all years forward. That and it seemed kind of silly to have an annual meeting for a pool in the dead of winter.

Wow, that was a lot. Thank you so much for staying with us through that entire run down. As always, please email us at info@briarwoodpool.net with any comments, questions or concerns. We do take your input to heart and try to respond, as necessary, as quickly as possible.

Here's to some exciting improvements and a fun 2026 pool season ahead!

All the best,

Briarwood Pool Association Board