Public Employee Press

Union presses city for pool repairs

Concern for City Lifeguards and the public prompted Local Presidents Peter Stein and Franklyn Paige to press the Parks Dept. for plans to fix ventilation systems at its indoor pools. Parks answered the union by an email May 22 that outlined plans for HVAC repairs, but gave no specific timeline.

"The safety of our center members and Parks staff is our highest priority," wrote Parks Dept. spokesperson Tara Kiernan. "Many of our indoor pools were constructed nearly a century ago and we are working to upgrade them all. Improvement projects at 10 indoor pools have either been completed, are in design, or have received funding."

Paige and Stein said fog, condensation, poor ventilation and erratic temperatures plagued the majority of indoor pools where City Lifeguards, Supervisors and other unionized Parks staff work.

But without a timeline for repairs it's all nebulous, the union leaders said.

Pressure from the union and a powerful exposé in PEP led Parks to renovate the pool at the Brownsville Rec Center with a new dehumidification system, new lighting and decorative panels.

Parks also upgraded the pool at Manhattan's Gertrude Ederle Recreation Center, with a $15 million renovation that included a new filtration system, temperature controls, and brand new windows for ventilation.

Parks knows of five renovation projects in the early stages of procurement and funding, but as PEP went to press, they had no start dates.

DC 37 raised the issue at City Hall and advocated for funding to fix or replace HVAC systems at rec center pools. The union's Safety and Health Dept. investigated conditions at several indoor pools and filed formal complaints with the state Labor Dept.'s Public Employee Safety and Health (PESH), the Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Citywide Office of Occupational Safety and Health (COSH).

Though the PESH findings are pending, COSH found the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system at the East 54th St. recreation center has not worked for years; the HVAC at St. John's pool in Brooklyn broke down over seven years ago.

At Brooklyn's Metropolitan pool, the HVAC hasn't worked in 25 years. COSH recommends that the Parks Dept. repair or replace these ventilation/air conditioning systems. The union expects similar recommendations for repairs at Tony Dapolito rec center pool and Flushing Aquatic Center, built in 2008 for a whopping $66.3 million, whose HVAC systems malfunction. "Parks management has allowed poor conditions to exist and these are real problems for our members and the public," Stein said.

Additionally, the Parks Dept. recently issued an engineering report that found despite a $50 million makeover in 2012 at McCarren Pool in Williamsburg, moisture infiltrates the roof and brick façade of the bathhouse. "We have repeatedly asked the city to budget monies and to develop a set of plans and a real timeline to fix or replace dilapidated HVAC systems and make repairs at the city pools," said Stein.

DC 37 will keep the pressure on until Parks fixes these conditions that jeopardize the public and Parks employees.

— Diane S. Williams