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Marion officials gearing up for aquatics center referendum
Council recently approved terms to purchase property to build an outdoor aquatic center to replace the city's aging swimming pool
Nov. 30, 2024 5:30 am, Updated: Jul. 22, 2025 10:45 am
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MARION — Progress continues on plans to build an outdoor aquatics center in Marion.
Marion City Council members recently approved terms to purchase 24 acres of property to build a new aquatic center to replace the city's aging swimming pool. The purchase is contingent on the city obtaining funding through a bond referendum in November 2025.
If the referendum fails, the city will be reimbursed the $1 million principal put into escrow, with the property owner receiving earned interest to hold the land, according to city documents.
Council members unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding with Atlas LP Company, LLC and Atlas Building Company LC to purchase land just north of Highway 100, near the intersection of 31st Street and Munier Road. It is about a mile south of the current pool.
The memorandum expresses the city’s interest in purchasing the property and is non-binding, according to the memorandum. A formal purchase agreement would still be required to finalize any land sale.
City Manager Ryan Waller said city staff are working to put together updated cost estimates, including design services, for the new aquatic center.
The Marion pool will operate until the new facility is built, with a tentative grand opening in May 2027 and demolition and redevelopment of the existing Marion Swimming Pool at Willowood Park, 1855 35th St., from May 2027 to April 2028, Waller said.
The city’s 2016 Master Park Plan and Marion’s ImagiNEXT project identified a new outdoor aquatic center as a top desire of residents. In response, the city worked with Waters Edge Aquatic Design to conduct an Outdoor Aquatic Center Feasibility Study that recommended a $26-$27 million facility for all ages and abilities, designed to accommodate the growing community and attract new residents and visitors to Marion.
The 2021 study gathered community feedback and reviewed the current facility to determine whether it could be a viable option as well as potential sites for a new center. More than 1,300 residents responded to a city survey about the future aquatic center.
The proposed concept includes a lazy river, water slides, a leisure pool, a wave pool, a 25-yard lap pool with a ninja warrior obstacle course, and a diving well.
“We went out to the community and we said, ‘What do you want? And they said, ‘Go big,’” Waller told The Gazette. “We showed them three options and they wanted the biggest option.”
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The Marion Swimming Pool opened in 1987. The aging facility is experiencing ongoing and increasing maintenance, and attendance has dropped in the last few years, according to city staff. It includes a 50-meter lap pool, a diving area, a shallow training pool, a baby pool and a splash pad.
Waller said city staff plan to present a contract for design services for council approval in December or January. Staff will work with Waters Edge, the design consultant that prepared the 2021 feasibility study, to refine the conceptual design and draw up construction plans to provide a more accurate estimated project cost.
He said staff also have been working with the city’s financial advisers to develop models based on various scenarios to assess how the project would affect the city’s debt load and property tax rate.
Iowa’s constitution limits the amount of debt a city can incur that’s repaid from property taxes to no more than 5 percent of the value of taxable property within the city. The Marion City Council had adopted a self-imposed 2.5 percent debt limit.
Next steps include launching a capital campaign to raise money, forming a steering committee of community members to help guide the project and its design, and gathering feedback from residents on plans for repurposing Willowood Park once the pool site is demolished.
“We want to make sure that we don't just leave a void,” Waller said. “… So we’ve got a long ways to go, but Rome was not built in a day and neither will this Aquatic Center.”
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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