By Claudine Stines

Walnut – In August of last year, the Walnut City Council approved the sale of the Three Oaks property, allowing the proceeds to be used for the development of an aquatic and recreational facility to be located in a more convenient public setting.

Last October, Standard Pacific of Orange County – the original developer for the Three Oaks property – filed a Writ of Mandate against the City, stating, in part, that since the original purpose for the property would not be realized, the project should revert back to the original developer.

Since the Writ was filed, there has been no action on the property.  Negotiations with the City are continuing, and it is speculated that a resolution may be reached by April.

In the meantime, the renovation of the Walnut High School swimming pool is scheduled to take place this June.  Part of the transformation will include extending the depth of the pool to include six lanes for competitive swimming.  In order to accomplish this without making the pool larger, they will have to use portions of the shallow end of the pool.

With the new configurations, the City will no longer have the convenience of using the pool for their summer aquatic program.  As of now, there is not an option for the 2015 summer aquatic program; however, the City will continue to look for a viable location.

More information will be provided as it becomes available.