Published: May 11, 2008 10:48 pm      

Q&A: Pool now not-for-profit

It was there before some roads were in Lockport.

A staple in the community, the Briarwood Pool & Tennis Club, at the end of Willow Street and Briarwood Drive, began more than 40 years ago. But like some other organizations, Briarwood is facing declining membership and financial hardship. Recently, Briarwood received 501 (c) (3) non-profit status with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which board president John Craig said he hopes will help the club with its money problems.

Not just a pool, the club also offers a tennis court, basketball nets and a street hockey court. While the pool has seen an increase in membership last year, there remain some financial concerns. Craig said there are a few fundraising events and programs in the works to further help out the pool.

Craig and Briarwood board member Peter Quirk spoke with the Union-Sun & Journal about the pool and what actions are being taken to keep the pool afloat.



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QUESTION: What are some of the changes this year with the pool?

ANSWER: We’re going to have some new programming this year. We just received 501 (c) (3) status for the pool, so we are a not-for-profit organization. We can do some official fundraising. This is something since 2003 they’ve been discussing, so we filed paperwork in September, and April 4 we got our designation. It will give us an opportunity to maybe seek some other grants or carry on other fundraising, which will help.

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Q: Are there any fundraising events in the works?

A: There are some things we’re working on and looking at. New programming and new fundraising, where we can do a little more now. And there are some membership drives on now, but we’ve reduced membership sign-on costs, like some other country clubs.

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Q: What kind of new programs are coming?

A: This summer, we will offer some different types of water aerobics and some different types of programming. We are thinking of offering junior lifeguard courses and we’re even thinking of the feasibility of scuba diving certification, perhaps. We know somebody that is a certified diver and we are thinking about certified dive instruction. Maybe if there’s interest, and like anything else it is based on enrollment and interest. There’s been some interest in 3- and 4-year-olds’ swim lessons. We’re going to have a more coordinated effort to get the programming out early in the season. That’s so to spur interest in the programs and in membership, too.

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Q: Can people sign up anytime?

A: There is going to be an official sign-up period as soon as we can get the calendar official. We do have a very rough calendar draft now, but we’re planning to finalize that probably within a week or so, and then we will make that available. We have a Web site blog where we can post a lot of the information, and the site is briarwoodpool.blogspot.com. It’s easier to maintain a blog than a site. A member’s son actually put it together for us. We add to it weekly, and people can go there and grab information if they need to.

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Q: Are there any increasing costs?

A: We had to increase the membership of returning members. Membership went up 60 percent last year, but it had to in order for the pool to stay viable. We had an investment group come in and help us out with covering outstanding debt in terms of a mortgage. So we’ve satisfied that, but we have a promissory note to a group that has extended it one more year. But we certainly have to get to a point to secure a mortgage, which we have approached some commercial lenders. The issue is you need to have three years of financial stability, and we really have not had a stable fiscal environment. Costs increase — last year alone, staffing costs went up 28 percent. Cost of energy, just the cost of doing business is going up, even though it’s a seasonal club.

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Q: Anything else to add?

A: We are looking for ways to partner with other community organizations. We’re trying to reach out to families who don’t have a pool, and we’re cheaper than owning a pool. We have financial obligations to meet, but if we don’t, we lose another year of fiscal stability. We have this facility to offer for everyone to take advantage of. It’s a community thing.

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Contact reporter Joe Olenick

at 439-9222, ext. 6241.