Tooele County pool closed for 2023 season for unexpected repairs

TOOELE, Utah — Even if you closed your eyes, most people could still tell it’s softball season at the Deseret Peak Complex in Tooele County. The sounds of the game were easily recognizable Saturday morning.

“Go! Run! Run! Run!” said Amy Johnson while cheering on her daughter’s team. “Nice hit!”

However, one thing you won’t hear after this tournament is the sound of players jumping into the pool across the street like they traditionally have in past seasons.

The Energy Solutions Aquatic Center is closed for the season. Tooele County leaders made the announcement earlier this week.

“The pool sinking has been an issue since the pool was built,” said Brittany Lopez, Tooele County’s assistant manager. “No one ever really took the time to dig into it to find out what was going on with it.”

The pool was built nearly 20 years ago. After last season, crews started looking into repairs, only to discover the damage was more than anyone anticipated.

“What we thought the fix could be turned out definitely not,” Lopez explained. “There was definitely more intensive damage, and to fix it correctly and to be responsible with our finances, we need to take the time to do a permanent fix on the pool.”

Lopez said the county could have probably done a patch-up job for this season with half the pool being open and lower water levels, but county leaders figured it would be best to do all the concrete repairs at once to fix the foundation and shifting pipes.

Even if it means a lost season.

“We’re going to run a few more tests that will really tell us why the pool is sinking, and once those tests come up, we’ll have a better path forward of what can happen,” Lopez said.

For now, those team and family traditions of using the pool, and all the sounds of fun with it, will have to wait.

“Once the pool does open, it’s going to feel like a whole new pool,” Lopez expressed.