Westbrook residents, left of facilitator Craig Freshley with back to camera, stand during a public participation meeting Aug. 28 in support of a swimming pool. Robert Lowell / American Journal

Westbrook has launched its online swimming pool survey in an effort to learn what the city’s residents want. Options include a pool, splash pad or no project.

An estimated 40 residents attended the Aug. 28 meeting when the survey was launched about the possibility of adding an outdoor pool.

The survey will be available through Sept. 29. “We want to hear from everybody,” said city consultant Craig Freshley of Good Group Decisions, who facilitated the meeting.

The City Council will ultimately determine whether a project moves forward.

The city has an indoor pool now at the Community Center on Bridge Street. The city demolished its outdoor pool at the Cornelia Warren Recreation Area on Main Street four years ago after it was shuttered because of costly repairs.

City Councilor Gary Rairdon said the Warren pool is gone. “How many other municipalities have two pools?” he said.

The city has speculated that the cost of a new outdoor pool could range from $3 million to $14 million and many residents are concerned about the impact on the tax rate.

Assistant City Administrator and City Clerk Angela Holmes said the tax increase for a pool costing $5 million would add $34.10 to the tax bill for the city’s median single-family home during the life of a bond; $60.82 for a $10 million pool; and $102.30 for $15 million.

Rairdon cautioned taxpayers that in a “few short years” the city would face a proposal for a new high school, renovations to Congin Elementary School, upgrading athletic fields, improvements to police station locker rooms, and replacing Fire Station 3. “We need to be very strategic in our wants and needs,” Rairdon said.

Resident Paul James, citing impact on the elderly, recommended that a pool be tabled.

But the city could partner with civic groups or receive grants to help reduce the impact on taxpayers. “We don’t have anything secured yet,” Freshley said.

City Councilor Michael Shaughnessy is interested in learning what people want in a water amenity – one to cool off, or for swimming lessons. A pool would not have to accommodate high diving, Shaughnessy said.

Another concern is where an aquatic project would located. The city has looked at 16 sites, including the Community Center and the Warren Recreational site. “The high school might be a great place for a pool,” Bruce Wallingford, a member of the Recreation and Conservation Commission, said.

The survey asks 20 questions, including whether responders’ household had access to a water amenity in 2024, ranking preferences for a water amenity, and level of support for a pool cost.

The final of three public participation meetings is set for Nov. 14 to discuss the results of the survey.

Holmes said the city will send postcards about the survey to property owners and provide flyers for children to take home. Holmes encouraged everyone’s participation and noted that an earlier survey published as an advertisement in the American Journal was not city sponsored.

To participate in the survey, go to surveymonkey.com/r/7PTV555 or call 854-9105.