The opening of the swimming pool is stalled indefinitely because the Haines Borough and the Indiana contractor working on the renovation project are at odds over the project’s completion.
The borough began issuing penalties to the contractor, RenoSys, of $1,500 per day since Oct. 25, the contracted completion day. As it stands, those fines amounted to $16,500 as of Monday. Public facilities director Ed Coffland said the contractor’s management asserts the company “met substantial completion on Oct. 24 because they had water in the pool, never mind the fact that it leaks.”
“That pool could be filled today if they wanted,” said RenoSys president Steve Comstock. “We have our guys on site. We haven’t abandoned the pool and we’re waiting for these chemicals to show up.”
Comstock says the delay of the pool’s chemicals is stalling the pool’s opening, not what he describes as minor leaks within the pool liner that can be easily repaired under water. “We noticed there were some drips, which is not uncommon in major renovations,” Comstock said. “It’s not holding them from filling the pool.”
The pool has been filled and drained three times since Sept. 30, during which time leaks were discovered and repaired, said borough manager Debra Schnabel. Schnabel said the pool remains drained while further leaks are identified and repaired. She said options for resolution include “using the pool in a state of disrepair, with repair to be scheduled by the contractor after the Dolphins swim season ends, removing the liner and starting over, or continuing to patch and repair the existing liner.”
Borough staff and the contractor also disagree over whose responsibility it was to provide the chlorine tablets necessary to maintain the pool water.
“We had improvised a temporary chlorine feed system when it became apparent RenoSys was unable to deliver the ‘initial tablet setup’ as required by your contract,” Coffland wrote to Comstock. “We had injected chlorine into the pool the second time the pool was filled, but your team decided to drain the pool in order to ‘find leaks and repair them.’ We will continue to use the temporary chlorine feed system until our order arrives.”
Comstock said his company ordered the chemicals in September, but various delays, partly because they are considered a hazardous material, have prevented them from arriving. He said it’s not his company’s responsibility to ensure the chemicals arrive from the manufacturer in a timely manner.
“All parties have tried diligently to secure and expedite the required tablets with no luck,” Comstock said. “(The manufacturer) has washed their hands of helping. To say this is a RenoSys problem is not only unfair but unfounded.”
Coffland said he ordered a year’s supply of chlorine tablets from a Washington supplier that should arrive soon.