A DAY IN THE LIFE
Published: July 21, 2018 | July 29, 2018
Lifelong resident Courtney Cole provided insight into the needs of the Hall of Waters building in her blog “A Day in the Life”, prior to a failed ballot issue to pass a tax levy to generate funds for its restoration. Coverage featured photos and information. Excerpts from her blogs are below.
The City of Excelsior Springs prepared a Request for Proposal on the Hall of Waters in 2016 to seek a unique partnership for redevelopment. Discussion with the local towns people made it clear that they did not want the city to sell (or give away) the Hall of Waters for private use. It was important that it remain open to the public and owned by the public.
I can’t imagine our community without the Hall of Waters. It’s the heart of the downtown and was built in celebration of our unique waters whose varieties can’t be found together anywhere else on earth. It would be such a disappointment to see it go.
In the plans, there is space planned for a lobby, circulation, leasable space, staff only space, mechanical, public space, and storage.
In the Solarium we have our Visitor’s Center, where the public can walk around the water-bar and learn some of our history.
Heritage Tourism grows our economy. Tourism is one of our critical industries. It supports our quality of life, as well as many jobs and businesses.
This is probably the space most folks have a heart for and memories of. I brought a couple down to see it and the man told me he remembered taking water babies here. I was able to tell him that I did, too!
The original well spring Siloam. You can see the red iron in the water coming out of the floor. The springs are healthy!
Each yellow pin represents a well site in our downtown. There is no other place in the world that has as many mineral water well sites as Excelsior Springs.
This is the boiler room. The boilers are literally from the 50’s. Only one boiler remains in use and could go out at any time. The first priority for the Hall will be to fix the ventilation problems, including the HVAC from mold and other harmful airborne contaminants.
In the tunnel that runs alongside the bottom sides of the swimming pool, you can see the corrosion around the columns. The iron underneath is reacting to the contaminants in the air causing the damage. A new ventilation system can help to stop it.