FlowRider, lazy river to be added to current facility

MOSES LAKE — Members of the Moses Lake City Council think the city is on the right track with designs of a proposed expansion to the Moses Lake Family Aquatic Center, but do have questions about the design and costs of the project.

The city is proposing a $2.5 to $3 million expansion of the 12-year-old center, which would add a FlowRider wave attraction and lazy river to the current facility at McCosh Park. Current designs have placed the expansion in between the current facility and park, in a location that once housed the city's original Swedberg Pool.

The FlowRider is characterized as a near-surfing experience in which riders are able to knee or boogie board on the wave channel. In addition to the FlowRider, and a meandering lazy river, current designs add a new bathhouse with concessions and shop area adjacent to the wave attraction.

The council heard Tuesday from Tim Gremmer of Wisconsin-based Water Technologies Inc., a consultant on the expansion who was also involved with the design of the current aquatic center. The design is still in the conceptual stages, and Gremmer told the council Tuesday aspects of the project that could change as the city gets closer to a final design.

Council members took no action on the plan, but did have questions about designs and pricing of the expansion.

"I'd like to see how this FlowRider is going to integrate into that concept," Mayor Ron Covey said during the discussion, "and how it would integrate into the facility we saw in Great Falls, Montana."

A group from the city went to Montana last summer to look at that pool's FlowRider, but the model they saw is no longer being made by the company. Covey said he wanted representatives from FlowRider to come visit the city with pictures to see how the newer models would look inside the aquatic center.

Gremmer told the council it was important to save trees for shade at the facility, particularly after the high temperatures in the Basin over the last few days. On those hot days, he said shade from trees are valued commodities.

City staff are currently exploring pricing options for after the facility is open, currently planned for May 2007. One option included different colored wristbands to determine what level of facility swimmers can use at the aquatic center.

All swimmers would have the opportunity to watch the action of the FlowRider, Gremmer said, which is designed as the attraction of the expansion.

"People will congregate, it's a show," Gremmer said.

The design tries to accommodate for a gathering area next to the FlowRider to allow people to congregate and watch the action. The viewing area is designed adjacent to the plan with a number of umbrellas.

The council approved issuing $6.1 million in bonds last month, to pay for the aquatic center expansion along with a new ice rink and reconstruction of a portion of downtown.

City Manager Joe Gavinski said Tuesday the city would have approximately $2.5 million in bond funding for the aquatic center expansion. Gavinski said the possibility also exists to use separate funding for the rest room additions on the project, outside of the bond funding previously approved.

Talks had previously centered around two different FlowRider wave chutes, but Gremmer's design Tuesday proposed the single-chute model. Gavinski told council members the addition of a second chute to the FlowRider would add an additional $250,000 to the project.

"If you're going to reduce costs, it's going to be in your concession building and also in the length of your lazy river," Gavinski said.

Council members told city staff they thought they were on the right track with the design, but said they wanted to make sure the project itself is done right. Councilman Dick Deane commented the city needed to take on the project with "gusto."

"Tourism, I don't want to cut that short," Deane said. "We want people to realize that this is the gem for the Pacific Northwest."

Design concepts will come back before the council at the July 11 meeting.