Maytag Pool approved for $1.05M construction of play features and other improvements

Swimmers are going to see major improvements to Maytag Pool the likes of which have probably never been seen before in the facility’s history.

Or at least recent memory.

The pool has certainly seen its fair share of changes over the past few years, from repainting the slides to fixing a severely leaky water basin and making a number of needed maintenance upgrades. But the added features approved by council on Sept. 5 could make the pool a premier local recreational opportunity.

Randy Ervin, a council member at-large and mayor pro-tem, said a lot of people have talked positively about the behind-the-scenes work like the new heater and cleanliness of the pool, but these new improvements are “something that everybody using it will notice immediately.”

Improvements include the removal of existing shallow-end fountains and seating areas, installation of a new shallow-end play structure, replacement of the existing three-meter diving board with a new three-meter board with stair access, shade structure upgrades and piping upgrades beneath the shallow end.

There is also a zip-line.

Four bids were received for the project, with the low bid of more than $1.05 million awarded to Sande Construction of Humboldt. Larsen Construction of Independence bid more than $1.27 million, Ricchio, Inc. bid more than $1.33 million and Minturn, Inc. bid more than $1.37 million for the project.

Newton City Administrator Matt Muckler said the Maytag Pool improvements project was one of two parks projects that came in above what staff expected, with the other being the Westwood Golf Course Clubhouse project. The bids for the clubhouse project were “much, much more” than expected, and rejected.

However, the bids for the Maytag Pool improvements were not. Still, Muckler admitted the price tag was higher than what was expected, but he said it is important to move forward so the city can deliver on all four projects featured on the park bond, including the clubhouse, dog park and pickleball courts.

“Were the council to approve this tonight, we could have the play features of this whole project completed in time for the swim season next year,” Muckler said.

Originally, city staff estimated the project to cost $550,000. According to city documents, the engineer’s estimate for the project and an add-alternate was more than $1.1 million. Muckler said the bidding outcome was similar to the Union Drive project, which also came in significantly higher than expected.

“Bids aren’t coming in where people were projecting when they were planning these projects,” Muckler said. “They’re coming in higher.”

Muckler also said there have been some code changes that affected the bids. Before the city sought bids, there was a certain section of code covering how “the guts of this system operates.” But the changes in construction codes forced the City of Newton to conform to those changes.