MILES CITY — Pools in Miles City will stay closed this summer as city leaders grapple with a budget shortfall they say has already forced cuts to essential services like police and fire.
Now, parents are speaking out, saying children are bearing the brunt of a financial crisis they didn’t create.
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Kenneth Sprague, a father of two, says trips to the pool were a regular part of summer for his family.
“Last year, we would spend three, four, sometimes five days a week,” he said. “My older kid likes the splash pad, but my five-year-old loves the little kid pool. Come out here ‘til they close.”
But those days are now on hold.
“If people have questions, you should be able to answer them truthfully and stick behind them,” Sprague said.
Miles City Mayor Dwayne Andrews says the closures are part of a larger cost-cutting effort.
The Natural Oasis and the Frog Pond will not open this summer, largely due to a massive leak and ongoing budget constraints.
The splash pad will offer limited service — open from May 21 through May 26, closed for maintenance May 27 through May 29, and then reopening for the spring-summer season on May 30, according to a recent social media post by the city of Miles City.
“You’ve got to have a balanced budget. You can’t spend money you don’t have,” said Andrews.
City officials say the pool closures will save roughly $70,000. It comes after previous cuts this fiscal year slashed law enforcement and fire department budgets.
“Anytime we came across a line item that wasn’t absolutely necessary to balance the budget — we had to cut it,” Andrews said.
But Sprague says the cost to the community’s children is immeasurable.
“It’s accountability. Where is the money that should have gone here, this year, for the pool? Where did it go?” he asked.
Mayor Andrews points to years of overspending and overly optimistic revenue estimates by past city leadership.
“There were over-expenditures every year. Every year,” he said.
With the pool gates now locked, Sprague says he worries that this summer might be the first of many without a public place for kids to cool off.
“There needs to be more forward thinking in this town,” he said. “I just hope these closures don’t become normal.”
