Introduction

The Sara Lavinia Hyams Fountain was built with a bequest to Audubon Park in 1914, and opened in 1921. The inscription reads: "Given to the Little Children of New Orleans by Sara Lavinia Hyams MCMXIV" (1914).

According the the ANI, "the fountain covers an area approximately 40'x 15' and consists of some beautiful sculptures, an upper bowl into which the water enters and overflows into a lower pool area, which varies in depth from 3" to 12"."

Also according to the ANI, "there has not been water in the fountain for the last 30 to 40 years, although the fountain is in overall excellent shape structurally." This is not quite true: the fountain was fully functional in the early 1970's, before the zoo expansion (in fact, there's a lovely photo in Ron Forman's book "Audubon Park: An Urban Eden"); and more recently (1989-90), City Councilwoman Dorothy Mae Taylor, in response to citizen complaints about the condition of the fountain, succeeded in getting the Audubon Commission to restore it. However, it was allowed to fall into disrepair again by the mid-1990's, a state in which it has remained.

Before listing five options to be discussed at the Public Meeting, the ANI states: "The Audubon Commission considered, in both the mid 1980's and the mid 1990's, whether the fountain should be turned into a wading pool [?] and, for public safety reasons, fenced either as part of the Audubon Zoo or as an area in Audubon Park separate from Audubon Zoo. The Audubon Commission's decision in both of those occasions was that the comments from the public did not support changing the existing, passive condition of the Hyams fountain and the surrounding area of Audubon Park."

In 1986, the ANI tried to enclose the Hyams fountain into the zoo, but were prevented from doing so by the 1978 court settlement preventing expansion of the zoo area beyond their current boundaries, a restriction that has been in effect to the present time. However, in an article in the Times-Picayune, Ron Forman defended the plan to expropriate the Hyams fountain by saying that "another wading pool near Magazine Street and the park stables would be available, free, and that the swimming pool is only 200 yards away." The ANI subsequently filled in the other wading pool, and demolished the historic Whitney Young swimming pool, later replacing it with a new smaller pool.

Five Options Proposed by Audubon Institute

1. No Change:
   Some clean up at the area and the fountain together with additional landscaping and light fixture repairs would occur, but usage of the area would remain the same. The fountain would remain dry and this area of Audubon Park would continue to be passive in nature.

2. Wading Pool in Audubon Park (unfenced):
   Necessary repairs and additional utilities would be made in the area to enable the installation of a re-circulating water system which would provide chlorinated water, open for public wading, from approximately Memorial Day until Labor Day. Some minor site improvements would be added in the area, including benches for parents to sit while children waded in the pool. When not in use as a wading pool, the bottom part of the pool would need to be kept dry, although the upper bowl could contain flowing water which was immediately drained after it flowed into the lower pool. The issue of safety and liability for an unfenced wading pool, both during the day as well as at night, would need to be explored by the Audubon Commission.

3. Wading Pool in Audubon Park (fenced):
   This is very similar to the above option. However, the area could be closed at night, thereby greatly reducing the safety issues during evening hours. It would also allow for water to remain in the fountain at all times that the fence was closed (it would be open in summer for wading).

4. Wading Pool in Audubon Zoo:
   The Zoo perimeter could be extended to include the Hyams Fountain within Audubon Zoo. This would address many of the safety issues related to an unfenced swimming/wading pool, provide access to the zoo's more than 800,000 annual visitors and safely allow water in both the upper and lower areas of the Hyams Fountain throughout the year. It would, however, extend the perimeter of the Zoo beyond its current borders and exclude non-Zoo visitors from physical access to the wading pool. This is very similar to the current situation with the Hyams Fountain at City Park.

5. Operate as a Fountain not a Wading Pool:
   The fountain could be made to operate similar to the fountain at St. Charles Avenue. Fresh water could be slowly flowing into the upper bowl, overflowing into the lower pool area and be immediately drained. This would provide an improved visual amenity in this area of Audubon Park without major changes to the usage in this area of the park. However, it would not provide a wading pool opportunity.

Comments

The Audubon Institute has previously claimed that legal liability issues prevent them from operating an unfenced wading pool in the park, and that therefore in order to be fully functional the Hyam's Fountain must be fenced, either directly or by enclosing it within the zoo.

Earlier attempts to expand the perimeter of the zoo to enclose the Fountain have failed because of an out-of-court settlement preventing further expansion of the zoo. In the current climate, following publication of Chris Rose's article in the Times-Picayune (This Old Fountain), ANI has again proposed expanding the zoo to incorporate the fountain, although other options for a fenced or unfenced pool or fountain are also listed.

We argue that enclosing the fountain within the zoo should be out of the question, since it not only contravenes the out of court settlement forbidding further expansion of the zoo, but also contravenes the spirit of the dedication of the fountain itself, to "all the little children of New Orleans", not to "the little children of New Orleans who have first paid admission to the zoo".

The option to leave the fountain unchanged is also clearly not acceptable, or we would not be having this discussion.

Of the remaining options, to operate a wading pool either fenced or not, or to convert the structure from a wading pool to a regular fountain and thereby reduce risk of accidents are all worthy of discussion and we hope that the July 1st meeting will reveal what the general public thinks on these issues as well as, perhaps, affording further suggestions that might be considered by the Commission.

A note on Zoning provisions

ANI has repeatedly argued that zoning ordinances and legal liabilities oblige them to fence the fountain in because of its "wading pool" component.

The following are the relevant provisions from the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (CZO) regarding pools:

Section 2.2 Definitions

178. Swimming Pools. Any structure, portable or permanent, containing a body of water eighteen (18) inches or more in depth, intended for recreational purposes, including a wading pool, but not including an ornamental reflecting pool, fish pond, or similar type pool, located and designed so as not to create a hazard or to be used for swimming or wading.

Section 15.5 Supplementary Height, Area and Bulk Regulations

15.5.12 Accessory Buildings and Structures (In all Districts Except the Vieux Carre Districts)

7. Accessory swimming pools, open and unenclosed, may occupy a required rear or side yard provided the water's edge is not located closer than four (4) feet to a rear or interior side lot line. Adequate hand holding provisions shall be made for pool entry and exit. Every swimming pool shall be protected by a safety fence or barrier approved by the Director of Safety and Permits. A walk space at least three (3) feet in width shall be provided on two (2) sides or fifty (50) percent of the exterior of the pool, whichever is greater, between the pool walls and protective fences or barrier walls.