Vandalism Delays Pool Opening One Week

The ribbon cutting for a new city of Corpus Christi pool is being delayed after it was vandalized over the weekend.

The damage was discovered yesterday morning by the facility's lifeguards. Pool equipment, along with an open bucket of black paint, was thrown in the pool sometime during the night, officials said.

Ashley Rioux, the aquatics program manager for the city of Corpus Christi's Parks and Recreation Department, said that there was no major damage to the pool.

"It was a break-in. Most of the stuff was just thrown in the water, so whatever they could get their hands on," said Rioux. "There was a paint can that got tossed in, so that's what most of the debris was. The rest of the damage is pretty minor."

According to Jay Ellington, director of Corpus Christi Parks and Recreation, the vandalism will not take very long to be fixed.

"It should be fixed within a couple of days," said Ellington. "And we don't think there is any damage yet, but we will be checking our systems the next couple of days."

Ellington added that the pool will not have to be drained, but just vacuumed to get the paint out of the water.

There are no security cameras at the pool, so they are unsure who threw the paint into the pool.

And while the damage will not be long lasting, it's still upsetting for the staff members.

"It's frustrating and it's hard, because we want everyone to come and we want ... a nice place to enjoy, but it was vandalized [and] we are closed until everything is safe and clean and up and running," said Rioux. "It just deters the people that do come here, but also doesn't allow for people to come, so they miss out yesterday and however long it takes to clean this up."

"So if there is a message, it's think about the community, think about everybody in the community," said Rioux. "Actually it's affecting a lot of other people who don't get to come out and enjoy the summer."

The Collier pool has been open since last July, but previous ribbon cutting ceremonies were delayed due to Hurricane Harvey and cold temperatures.

While the pool should reopen in a few days, a new date for the ribbon cutting ceremony has not been set.

Read More of Today's AB Headlines

Subscribe to Our Daily E-Newsletter