HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-30-26 Public Comment - T. Sadera - Community Needs RequestFrom:Tara Sadera
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Community Needs Request
Date:Wednesday, September 30, 2026 1:18:33 PM
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Good morning,
I am a resident of Bozeman and a swimmer. The Bozeman facilities as they relate to
swimming are astonishingly poor. Every child should learn how to swim but access to a poolis very limited.
The swim center at the high school is great - but swimming the width of the pool during
accessible times (because it is over crowded) is not great. And, why is it closed on theweekends when families with children are most free to utilize the pool for lessons or just
getting the kids into the water. I've been told by staff, they are not open on the weekendsbecause they can't get lifeguards on the weekends - that just can't be. There is a campus of
17,000 college kids which I am sure has many qualified lifeguards to help over the weekends.I was told they will only hire full time staff/lifeguards and that is why they don't have college
students working as lifeguards on the weekends. Well, change that rule. As I mentioned, I ama swimmer (swam since I was 6 and all the way through college and masters). I've lifeguarded,
given swim lessons, and swam on many teams. It is not tough to staff a pool if you allowpart time lifeguards.
For the summer, Bogart pool is just way too crowded and the lane lines are not adequate to
help mitigate the waves - it really is not a good place to swim unless you are a great swimmer.
Bozeman is a big community - and growing. It needs a dedicated aquatics center. All kidsshould learn how to swim - it really is a basic life skill. If an aquatics center is not in the cards
at this time, at the very least, you should have the swim center open over the weekends or,better yet, you should require MSU to provide hours for the community to access their pool
(which is more than adequate).
Thanks for your consideration,Tara Sadera