MAPLETON, Iowa (KCAU) — The mayor of a Siouxland town said children in the community will have to go another year without a character pool slide that was submitted for approval several months ago.
Mapleton Mayor Brent Streck expressed his frustration with the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) after the process for safety certification has delayed the addition of a duck slide to the Mapleton City Pool.
The baby duck-shaped slide is designed for kids between the ages of 2 and 5 years old. The slide would include safety features such as non-slip surfaces on the steps, grounded stainless-steel handrails, and gently rounded edges along with other details.
Mayor Streck said the duck slide was part of a plan to bring in more attractions for children who may not be able to go on the giant slide already in place. The slide is part of a larger project in which nearly $90,000 was raised for repairs and upgrades.
According to a post on Mayor Streck’s Facebook page, all required drawings, permits, and fees were submitted to the IDPH on November 3, 2021. The post indicated that everything should have been processed between four to eight weeks, but they didn’t receive any communication from IDPH until 12 weeks later on January 25.
Streck’s post specified that there were complications involving past permits from more than 20 years ago. After addressing the past permits, Streck and his team ordered the duck slide. However, even though Streck thought everything was good to go, the IDPH informed him that the slide doesn’t meet the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) federal certification requirements.
Streck said the CPSC safety standard for Swimming Pool Slides was enacted more than 43 years ago, and when he called the certification office in Washington D.C., they told him that the duck slide doesn’t need the certification.
Streck’s post stated that the IDPH has approved the same slides of various characters across the state; including Siouxland pools. He specified that Holstein Community Pool is one of the latest to receive approval from the IDPH, and a post on their Facebook page indicates that they received their slide in early May.
Streck added that, despite hiring the same engineering firm that has designed these slides for different pools, the IDPH still will not approve the Mapleton duck slide. The firm, FAST Fiberglass, has put the slide on hold for Streck’s team and has offered to give a full refund if needed, but Streck said he refuses to give up on the project that people have donated their money to complete.
“The IDPH will not approve or deny our request. This was submitted back on November 3, 2021, and we are just waiting,” said Streck, “If they deny us, we will have to decide if we want to appeal their decision and file a lawsuit against the agency. They have approved these types of slides for 43 years, including some recently.”
Streck stated he’s been in contact with Senator Jason Schultz, whose team has been attempting to get answers from the IDPH as well. Streck said he asked a representative that if the certification is a federal requirement, then how can the same type of slides be found in other states surrounding Iowa. He said they indicated the other states must not be aware of the certification.
“[The IDPH] are now in discussion about having every facility that installed these slides remove them, even though they were approved by the IDPH,” said Streck, “Basically, they are saying this certification that is required was a rule that went into effect 43 years ago. Nothing has changed since then, but now they are going to enforce it. I can only imagine that if every pool and resort in Iowa has to remove these slides, that were approved and they paid a lot of money for, the IDPH will be looking at a very large class-action lawsuit. Also, when you look at every state around us, they all have these slides installed in city and resort pools. If this is a federal certification, why are they allowing them also? I am all for making sure things are safe for the people using them but trying to enforce a rule that is 43 years old, that hasn’t changed, is ridiculous.”
Streck described the situation as the most painful process ever, and the IDPH continues to delay the matter further. He added that in addition to losing the $5,300 for submitting the paperwork, the conflict has cost the community pool one more year without a slide for the small children of Mapleton.
