Swim meet shutdown adds urgency to Jackson City Pool discussion

FOX23 News at 9 p.m

JACKSON, Mo. (KBSI) — A mechanical failure cut short one of the Jackson Barracudas’ largest swim meets of the season Saturday, July 11, leading the team’s manager to speak out about the future of the Jackson City Pool.

The meet brought together seven teams and about 250 athletes from across the region. According to Jackson Barracudas Team Manager and Swim Meet Coordinator Brayden Walters, planning for the event began in February, and volunteers arrived at the pool around 5 a.m. Saturday to prepare for the competition.

Everything was running smoothly until about 15 events into what was scheduled to be an 80-event meet, Walters said.

At that point, he said Jackson Parks and Recreation officials informed him the pool’s pump and filtration system had failed, causing the water level to drop to an unsafe level for diving while preventing the water from being properly filtered. The meet was canceled as a result.

Afterward, the Jackson Barracudas team manager shared his experience in a Facebook post, describing the disappointment felt by swimmers, families and volunteers while calling attention to what he believes are long-standing issues with the aging facility.

“It was honestly very hard for me because whenever I got on there, just seeing the disappointment on everybody’s face,” Walters said. “There were multiple people that had driven two hours to come to this meet, and some people didn’t even get to see their child swim.”

Walters said several young swimmers were especially heartbroken because Saturday would have been their first swim meet. Others had hoped to use the competition to prepare for next weekend’s summer championship meet, the final event of the Barracudas’ season. Because of the timing, the canceled meet cannot be rescheduled.

In his Facebook post, Walters said he was “tired of asking everyone to just put up with this facility,” arguing that Jackson doesn’t simply want a new pool— it needs one. He said Saturday’s cancellation reinforced that belief.

“We can keep patching things, but the more that we’re patching things, really the worse off we are,” Walters said. “We have issues like this where this is a problem that has been patched and patched and patched, and then finally it got to a point where it broke and is no longer working at all.”

Walters, who also coaches the Jackson High School boys and girls swim teams, said the community’s growing interest in swimming has outgrown the current facility. Because the city does not have an indoor pool, the high school teams must travel to Cape Girardeau for practices during the fall and winter seasons.

He also said a modern aquatic facility could benefit more than local swimmers.

“We had 250 athletes plus their families. We’re talking 500-plus people that would have spent money in Jackson,” Walters said. “A pool is not only good for our swim teams, but I feel like it would also be something that would benefit the entire community.”

Walters also emphasized that he does not fault pool staff for what happened, saying the facility manager “is doing everything that he can” and felt terrible after the cancellation.

The cancellation comes just weeks after Jackson Parks and Recreation launched a community survey asking residents to share their thoughts on the future of the Jackson City Pool and potential improvements.

The pool will be closed Monday, July 13, while repairs are underway. Walters said he hopes the Barracudas will be able to resume practice Tuesday as they prepare for next weekend’s championship meet.

FOX23 has reached out to Jackson Parks and Recreation for comment regarding Saturday’s mechanical failure and the pool’s long-term plans. This article will be updated once a response is received.

CITY OF JACKSON SURVEY: cityofjacksonmo.gov/FormCenter/Parks-Recreation