BELLA VISTA — The Bella Vista Townhouse Association Board of Directors voted to eliminate two of its three swimming pools and their associated buildings.

The vote was 5-1 to go forward with the work to close the Britten Circle and Metfield facilities, the latter not to be confused with the Bella Vista Property Owners Association's pool near the Metfield Clubhouse.

Last fall, the townhouse board voted to delay any action on this plan pending results of a survey done throughout the summer as to the use of a third pool at Drake Courts. Those numbers were released Sept. 16, the day the vote to do away with the pools was taken.

Of the 1,048 townhouses in the association, pool users came from only 103, or 9.8 percent. Average daily attendance was 20.5, and the total number of people using the pool from May 22 through Sept. 7 was 2,233. On some days, only one person showed up.

This was the first year the association tracked facility usage.

In 2008, the association mailed a survey to all members in good standing, asking if they would be willing to pay more money to keep the amenities open. As is, those homeowners pay an assessment to the POA each month and an additional $55 to the Townhouse Association.

By roughly a 65-35 margin, the members said they would rather close pools and tenniscourts than pay more for their upkeep.

Townhouse Association Board Chairman Jack Adams called the survey results a "mandate."

"I think we've already gone over the issue that we're not going to be spending big money to rebuild pools. I think the question comes down to what do we do with (the Drake Courts) pool next year?"

Carol Miles said it all"comes down to cost effectiveness."

Board member Sam Sneed sees things a bit differently. In his opinion, the remaining swimming pool is a liability the association doesn't need to hang onto. However, his motion to fill in all three pools at the same time failed when only he and Dawn Fosco voted for it.

The board then decided to table any decision on the Drake Courts pool until the October meeting. In the meantime, General Manager David Whittlesey was asked to solicit bids on the cost to fill in the pool.

The cost to dig up and cover the Britten and Metfield pools is an estimated $10,000 each.

When the work is done, the area will be returned to its natural state, the general manager said. The contractor will haul away all the biodegradable materials, he added.

Sneed noted that the association paid nearly$20,000 this past summer just to maintain the Drake Courts pool - money that could have been used to eliminate the other two pools.

The board voted 5-1, with Sneed abstaining, to accept the $20,000 bid from D.J. Weber Concrete Construction Co. in Rogers.

Whittlesey expects the Drake Courts cost to be lower, as there is no building involved in the demolition.

No time table was set for the work to begin.

The board chose not to give any consideration to the future of the tennis courts at this time.

Adams said the association will post the results of summer usage of the Drake Courts pool on the Web site, www.bvth.com.

The next board meeting will be at 9 a.m.

Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 2 Cora Circle. A closeddoor session to discuss next year's budget will follow.

News, Pages 1, 7 on 09/23/2009

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