The Florence Aquatic Center (FAC) temporarily closed for the summer of 2019 as city officials under the administration of former Florence mayor Diane Whalen decided what to do with the plot: either keep the pool, or demolish it and rebuild something in its place.
This stemmed from the pool losing money each year it was open and going into a deficit. However, some community members see the pool as a huge resource that they were not ready to give up without fighting for.
Ultimately, the city council had decided to replace the pool with a multi-use park, but pool-goers held protests on pool grounds to keep the center open, which stopped the plans temporarily.
As a result, the city sent out surveys to residents of the City of Florence to gauge their opinion. When the results returned, a member of the Florence city council announced that the city was split on the issue, with a slight preference for keeping the pool open.
According to Florence City Council meeting minutes for the conference on Jan. 10, 2023, it was decided to reopen the pool for an additional year with promises to evaluate at the end of the season.
This decision was made under Florence’s current mayor, Julie Metzger Aubuchon.
Caroline Kemper, daughter of city councilmember, Jenna Kemper has deep roots with the FAC. Her mother was also one of the driving forces in keeping the pool open.
Initially, Caroline Kemper was surprised the pool was closing because during her time spent there, she was always accompanied by many other pool goers and community members.
“With the exception of some rainy days, there was always a line of people trying to get in at least 20 deep,” Caroline Kemper said.
Naomi Lively, another longtime member of the FAC was also upset with its closing as it was a big part of her childhood.
“I started swimming at the FAC when I was 6, so when the pool closed when I was 16, I had only worked there for one summer,” Lively said.
Caroline Kemper was also on the swim team which led to shared experiences between the pair.
The Florence Hammerheads, a swim team that is a part of the Northern Kentucky Swim League, had to practice at the RC Durr YMCA during the closing.
Caroline Kemper said that they were unable to host their own meets or create their own swimming schedule, and they had to find alternate places to practice diving.
This made Lively “feel a bit out of place.”
Caroline Kemper echoed this, saying the team felt “unsupported and pushed aside.”
Even more so, this had a personal impact for her.
“Not having that family (the team) or that home that I would go to so often (the FAC) made me feel alone,” Caroline Kemper said.
Caroline Kemper also recalls many swimmers leaving the Hammerheads during this time which she said took a toll on their long standing stature as a dominant team in the NKSL. Up until this point, they had championship teams, but now they were struggling for numbers.
When the pool reopened, everything flipped.
Lively said that it was a huge surprise when the pool reopened, because she assumed it would be closed for good.
When it was all said and done, getting the FAC back was a huge win.
“Even though there were many new staff and coaches and a lot of adjustments, I was just grateful to be back in the space I grew up in,” Lively said.
Caroline Kemper took the reopening to her advantage and soaked up everything the pool had to offer that summer.
“It was my first official summer guarding, my first summer back on the official team, my first summer reunited with my home away from home and my true FAC family,” said Caroline Kemper. “The fun and hard work I put in that summer is what motivates me to come back each summer.”
Thanks to the reopening and subsequent annual season openings, Caroline Kemper is now a graduated swimmer, head guard, former dive coach, and current swim coach for this upcoming season.
Lively had a similar path as she finished out her swimming career as a Hammerhead while simultaneously coaching the dive team.
The FAC is the one of the only public pools in the Florence area, and the sole public pool in the NKSL making it a huge resource for local families.
When the pool reopened, Lively recalled so many families sharing with her how thankful they were that the pool was back for another season.
Caroline Kemper thinks of the pool as a huge community asset.
The FAC is a great resource for exercise, education, jobs, and joy,” Caroline Kemper said.
Additionally, this pool is a virtue because Florence residents don’t have to commit to a full membership to experience what the FAC has to offer.
Unlike other pools in the area, at the FAC patrons can buy tickets at the door by the day for $12 dollars per adult, and $10 for those ages 3-15 and seniors. After 4 p.m., that price is cut to $4.
The FAC is a great resource just miles from Boone that many students could have the chance to experience if they so choose in the coming summer months.
