The Grand Island YMCA’s pool has six lanes, which does not meet the city’s needs. A new Aquatics Center at the Veteran’s Village Good Life District project would provide a replacement for the YMCA pool. The YMCA opened at its current site in 1979. (Carol Bryant, Central Nebraska Today)
GRAND ISLAND – A revised plan for an Aquatics Center at Veteran’s Village funded by the Good Life District program should meet Grand Island’s needs for the next several decades, Grand Island City Council member Ryan O’Neill said Dec. 7.
Woodsonia Real Estate unveiled its plan for an Aquatics Center at a Nov. 12 City Council meeting with plans for a three-lane pool. City Council members told Woodsonia that a three-lane pool would not meet the community’s needs and asked Woodsonia to present a revised plan at the Dec. 9 City Council meeting.
Woodsonia asked on Nov. 12 that a city representative be designated to work with them on the revised plan, and Ryan O’Neill was selected.
Although a little confusing for attribution because of the same last name, Pat O’Neill of Grand Island is a spokesman for the Grand Island YMCA concerning the Aquatics Center, and his comments are included in the second half of this story. Comments in the first part of this story are from Ryan O’Neill.
The revised plan for the Aquatics Center includes a 10-lane, 25-yard competitive pool; a diving well to accommodate two diving boards, seating capacity for at least 400 attendees, a warm water therapy pool with zero depth entry, and a Jacuzzi.
Ryan O’Neill estimated that the cost of the Aquatics Center would be $25 million, which is $10 million more than the cost for the initial Aquatics Center.
“The 10-lane design should reasonably meet our long-term needs by allowing the pool to be segmented for multiple uses at peak times. With only six lanes, that’s very difficult today, and while eight would help, 10 lanes provide the flexibility needed for the next several decades,” O’Neill said.
The warm water pool “would comfortably accommodate about 30 to 40 people at a time and have the ability for more during really busy periods,” O’Neill said.
He said that the warm water pool would include splash pad elements for young children.
It was considered to have a “lazy river,” which the city currently has at Island Oasis, but the decision was made not to include a lazy river.
“We looked at a range of warm water features, but ultimately focused the warm water pool on flexible, scheduled needs such as therapy, lessons, and family friendly recreation. The goal is for this aquatics center to complement, rather than compete with other aquatic facilities in the city,” O’Neill said.
He commented about how many people the Aquatics Center could serve at any one time.
“At peak, the Aquatics Center could accommodate 200-plus swimmers across all pools in an open swim environment. Actual numbers would vary based on schedules that balance lap lanes, lessons, therapy, and recreational use, and the facility will also provide seating for up to 400 spectators in the bleachers plus additional space in the multipurpose room for teams and events,” O’Neill said.
“The original proposal was simply too small to meet our needs. A three-lane pool cannot reasonably replace an aging six lane pool that was already at capacity and did not include a viable warm water therapy option,” O’Neill said.
Ryan O’Neill described his background with the YMCA pool.
“I’ve been swimming at the YMCA for about 40 years since I grew up here. I’m an experienced lap swimmer, and our kids swam in competitive meets in the past. I’ve attended meets at other facilities and through that experience, I’m very familiar with how our current pool operates as well as the challenges and needs that a modern indoor aquatics center should address,” O’Neill said.
The Veteran’s Village plan at the Aquatics Center site includes space available for an adjacent facility such as a YMCA.
“The site’s master plan does allow for another building next to the Aquatics Center that could accommodate such a facility. That would depend on the YMCA or another interested community partner securing the necessary funding and submitting a proposal,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill said it is possible that if the YMCA has a site at the Veteran’s Village location, it could manage the Aquatics Center and Sports Complex.
“That is a possibility, and the YMCA has experience with aquatics in our community. Any management decisions should be handled through an open, competitive proposal process to best meet the needs for each facility,” O’Neill said.
Woodsonia Real Estate would construct the Aquatics Center, and then the city would own the building, O’Neill said.
“I support a model where the City owns the Aquatics Center, but a third-party operator with aquatics experience is contracted to run the facility,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill said the consulting firm Brandstetter Carroll, which offers architectural, engineering, and planning services, participated in conversations with Woodsonia Real Estate after the Nov. 12 meeting. Woodsonia Real Estate involved Brandstetter Carroll in its original plan presented on Nov. 12.
Pat O’Neill of Grand Island is the spokesman for the Grand Island YMCA concerning the proposed Aquatics Center. Pat O’Neill served on the YMCA’s board from 2019 to 2025.
The remaining references to “O’Neill” in this article are Pat O’Neill’s responses to questions.
Pat O’Neill said that the new proposal for the Aquatics Center should meet the community’s needs for at least the next 15 to 20 years. The Grand Island YMCA opened in 1979, so the current YMCA pool has served the community for 46 years.
“The YMCA pool was open for about 15 years before the push began for a new pool in the mid-1990s. This Aquatics Center certainly seems to satisfy the biggest portion of the community’s needs,” Pat O’Neill said.
The revised proposal “checks 95 percent of the boxes” for what is needed for a community Aquatics Center, O’Neill said.
“The only thing I see would be the need for some more multi-purpose room space and maybe some expanded seating,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill said that he has not had any conversations with Woodsonia Real Estate since the Nov. 12 City Council meeting.
“While the swimming pool is certainly my top concern, it is only a portion of a project that would bring over half of a billion dollars of construction to Grand Island, so they may be very busy,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill commented about whether the size of the proposed warm water pool was large enough to meet the city’s needs.
“Based on the size of the warm water pool on the plans, it seems to be larger than I expected and should help meet the need for a warm water therapy-type pool for seniors and physical rehab as well as use by the general public,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill commented about whether the YMCA would open a facility at the Veteran’s Village site.
“The original Good Life District proposal included an entire new YMCA at Veteran’s Village. Unfortunately, the Legislature has made changes…that greatly reduced the amount of funding available to Woodsonia,and the new YMCA was reduced to a new pool,” Pat O’Neill said.
“I had several conversations with the former City Administrator about the YMCA’s interest in managing the pool and building the new YMCA adjacent to it. I have recently been informed that the City Administration’s current idea is to have one firm run the Sports Complex, ball fields, and Aquatics Center. The YMCA is certainly interested in building a new YMCA at Veteran’s Village, but that will largely rest on how the city-owned Aquatics Center will be managed,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill described what features a YMCA located at Veteran’s Village would have.
“The facility at Veteran’s Village would be a replacement for the aging facility downtown. It would include everything from fitness classes, weights, cardio equipment, and yoga classes. The heart of the YMCA would continue to be service to the community through childcare, youth sports (football, basketball, volleyball, taekwondo, soccer, swim lessons, swim team, etc…) and our senior aerobics and mobility classes,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill talked about what would happen to the existing YMCA building if a new YMCA is constructed.
“If the YMCA is chosen to manage the Aquatics Center and is allowed to build a new YMCA, it would replace the current YMCA, which would likely be sold,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill described what the differences would be between a new YMCA and the proposed indoor Sports Complex.
“The Sports Complex’s primary goal is to bring in large numbers of out-of-town visitors in for tournaments and competitions. The YMCA would be mostly focused on local recreation and fitness opportunities. While no plans are set, the YMCA would likely include weights, cardio, fitness and yoga classes, a variety of youth sports and senior activities as well as multiple courts for volleyball, basketball, pickleball, and maybe even some newer activities,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill said that the YMCA and indoor Sports Complex would have different goals and serve different clientele.
“I believe the YMCA and Sports Complex would complement each other very well, as there are some synergies to be gained being on the same campus,” Pat O’Neill said.
O’Neill said that a new YMCA would not be constructed using Good Life District program funds. He said that the YMCA construction would have to be financed with private funds and fund-raising.
O’Neill commented about what would happen to the current YMCA’s pool if a new Aquatics Center is constructed.
“If the YMCA is chosen to operate the new pool, then the old pool would likely close. If the new Aquatics Center is managed by someone else, the YMCA would have some tough decisions to make. The YMCA could close and demolish the existing pool, or they could end up operating it while the YMCA designs a new YMCA or has renovations at its current facility,” Pat O’Neill said.
“The existing pool is in too bad of shape to continue being the only indoor pool in town, but under a reduced workload, the pool may be operable to support the YMCA swim teams, swim lessons and other YMCA-dedicated activities,” Pat O’Neill said.
“I would like to thank the Council for their leadership on this issue, particularly Councilman (Ryan) O’Neill. I know he has put in a lot of hours trying to iron out the details on this. City administration and other council members have also put in a lot of work. Jack Sheard has been very helpful,” Pat O’Neill said.
Pat O’Neill said he would also like to thank Woodsonia Real Estate.
“Those guys saw the opportunity of the Good Life District and took their own time and own money to apply for the state Good Life District project. While the entire development will be a huge asset to the city, I am particularly delighted that Woodsonia is willing to build such a nice aquatics facility, even after all the changes the Legislature has enacted. It’s a testament to the cooperation between Woodsonia, Chief (Construction), and the City of Grand Island,” Pat O’Neill said.
