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Committee plans aquatic center By BUFFY POLLOCK Some local business people are testing the waters for interest in a regional aquatic center. "At this point, we have more questions than we have answers," said Bill Little, acting chairman for an informal committee calling itself the Southern Oregon Aquatic Center. "We're pretty much an informal committee looking for sites and funding, trying to see what's out there and see how much support we have." SOAC - which consists of about 25 representatives from Medford, Central Point, Jackson County, Medford schools and several swim teams - was formed about three months ago to collect data on aquatic centers and determine the feasibility of such a project in the valley. The idea, said Little, popped up one day during a conversation with Medford Parks Commission member Jim Buckley, also now a SOAC member. "He has a daughter that swims and I have swimming and diving in my background. We just got to talking and realized what a need there was for something like this," explained Little, owner of Advanced Business Management Systems in Medford. "We thought it would be a really valuable project and a neat thing to work on. And we're considering it to be regional to encompass the needs of the entire Southern Oregon area." Medford's two pools, he explained, don't offer much more than a place to get cooled off in the summer. "Both Hawthorne and Jackson pools are used a great deal in summer time, but Hawthorne is extremely old and non-standard length, and Jackson isn't nearly large enough," he said. "There's one at the YMCA, but that officially can't be used for swimming competitions. It's too shallow." Interest from community seems strong, Little said. Surveys done in Central Point and Medford asked residents to rank activities they were interested in having available to the community. "In both cities, an aquatic center came out No. 1. That just enforces there's a need," said Little. SOAC member Brenda Edwards agreed. "My hope is for a regional aquatic facility to provide all the members of our community - ranging from little kids to the elderly to those with limited physical capacities - with fitness and recreation opportunities." Little said the committee will seek public comment when plans have taken shape. For more information or to offer suggestions, contact Little at 779-1797. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.