Construction continues on new Edmond aquatic center

Parking will be on multiple sides of the building. A total of $535,000 will come from the city's park tax to pay for parking lot improvements.

Edmond Electric is paying $691,000 for the geothermal cooling and heating system. Drilling of the 300 geothermal wells is nearly complete.

A geothermal system is a central heating and cooling system that pumps to or from the ground. Its design takes advantage of the moderate temperatures in the ground to boost efficiency and reduce the operational costs of heating and cooling systems.

Work on the project started May 21.

The school district is putting up $10 million for the construction. The city is spending $6.5 million out of the capital improvement sales tax money passed by voters in 2000. The three groups spent $983,018 on the design work.

YMCA officials expect to hire 15 to 20 full-time employees and an additional 100 part-time workers to operate the center.