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http://www.sptimes.com/2006/03/29/Northpinellas/Without_a_pool__life_.shtml
Patrick "Rusty" Ackerman would receive phone calls during the day, and his roommate always had the same answer for the callers.
"Well, Rusty's swimming," Ackerman, 41, recalled through interpreter Linda Losacano.
The Deaf & Hearing Connection of Tampa Bay, a nonprofit that manages the Bayou Courtyard Apartments, where Ackerman lives, recently closed the pool. Ever since, Ackerman has been relegated to spending his days sitting in a chair in the kitchen of his third-floor apartment.
It's all he can do since the pool was closed, he says. "I sit like I'm in prison," he said from his apartment last week.
DHC serves the deaf and hearing impaired in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. It gives hearing tests, distributes devices that assist those who are hard of hearing, offers counseling and helps with job searching. The group depends on donations, government assistance and fundraising, among other things, to operate.
The pool, the main recreation at the complex occupied mostly by deaf or hearing-impaired residents, has been closed sporadically over the last four or five years, Ackerman said. About two years ago, it closed. Period. He said he found out one day as he was going to take a dip. Somebody warned him that the pool looked dirty.
Ackerman is almost completely blind and his interpreter must use tactile communication. He couldn't see the pool's condition clearly.
"If nobody would've warned me, I would've definitely jumped into the pool," he said.
Ackerman and other residents were told that pool costs were too much to handle. Several residents got together and held two carwash fundraisers. Ackerman said they grossed about $900 and gave it to the DHC. He said he doesn't know what the money was used for.
According to DHC officials, costs to keep the pool functioning were overwhelming. It would have taken $20,000 to get the pool back in working condition, and another $10,000 for annual upkeep. Director Julie Church said the land is being converted into a picnic area for residents use.
The picnic area should be finished soon, said John Stross, chairman of DHC's board of directors. The pool sat unused for years because demolishing it was never the first option, he said.
"It shows the decision to close the pool was not something we rushed into," he said.
Aside from the picnic area, $15,000 has been allocated for a recreation room, which is expected to include a big-screen TV and pingpong and pool tables. The money came from an anonymous $35,000 donation earmarked for building maintenance. The donation was given with a challenge to match it through fundraising and other endeavors. So far, Church said, about $25,000 has been raised.
Using the money to keep the pool open wasn't an option, she said.
"(The DHC board) looked at the cost of keeping the pool," Church said. "We decided we could create a better recreation space that people could use."
But Ackerman disagrees. The pool was the best option, he said. People used the pool every day. On holidays, it would be full. He presented a petition with the names of 12 tenants who wanted the pool kept open. But the decision to close it already had been made, Church said.
"Whenever there's change, people sometimes get uncomfortable with it," Church said. "Our goal is to provide opportunities for deaf people to interact with others. We want to provide something, and we're trying to raise money to do that. The people who live here can't dictate the process."
Patrick "Rusty" Ackerman would receive phone calls during the day, and his roommate always had the same answer for the callers.
"Well, Rusty's swimming," Ackerman, 41, recalled through interpreter Linda Losacano.
The Deaf & Hearing Connection of Tampa Bay, a nonprofit that manages the Bayou Courtyard Apartments, where Ackerman lives, recently closed the pool. Ever since, Ackerman has been relegated to spending his days sitting in a chair in the kitchen of his third-floor apartment.
It's all he can do since the pool was closed, he says. "I sit like I'm in prison," he said from his apartment last week.
DHC serves the deaf and hearing impaired in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. It gives hearing tests, distributes devices that assist those who are hard of hearing, offers counseling and helps with job searching. The group depends on donations, government assistance and fundraising, among other things, to operate.
The pool, the main recreation at the complex occupied mostly by deaf or hearing-impaired residents, has been closed sporadically over the last four or five years, Ackerman said. About two years ago, it closed. Period. He said he found out one day as he was going to take a dip. Somebody warned him that the pool looked dirty.
Ackerman is almost completely blind and his interpreter must use tactile communication. He couldn't see the pool's condition clearly.
"If nobody would've warned me, I would've definitely jumped into the pool," he said.
Ackerman and other residents were told that pool costs were too much to handle. Several residents got together and held two carwash fundraisers. Ackerman said they grossed about $900 and gave it to the DHC. He said he doesn't know what the money was used for.
According to DHC officials, costs to keep the pool functioning were overwhelming. It would have taken $20,000 to get the pool back in working condition, and another $10,000 for annual upkeep. Director Julie Church said the land is being converted into a picnic area for residents use.
The picnic area should be finished soon, said John Stross, chairman of DHC's board of directors. The pool sat unused for years because demolishing it was never the first option, he said.
"It shows the decision to close the pool was not something we rushed into," he said.
Aside from the picnic area, $15,000 has been allocated for a recreation room, which is expected to include a big-screen TV and pingpong and pool tables. The money came from an anonymous $35,000 donation earmarked for building maintenance. The donation was given with a challenge to match it through fundraising and other endeavors. So far, Church said, about $25,000 has been raised.
Using the money to keep the pool open wasn't an option, she said.
"(The DHC board) looked at the cost of keeping the pool," Church said. "We decided we could create a better recreation space that people could use."
But Ackerman disagrees. The pool was the best option, he said. People used the pool every day. On holidays, it would be full. He presented a petition with the names of 12 tenants who wanted the pool kept open. But the decision to close it already had been made, Church said.
"Whenever there's change, people sometimes get uncomfortable with it," Church said. "Our goal is to provide opportunities for deaf people to interact with others. We want to provide something, and we're trying to raise money to do that. The people who live here can't dictate the process."