Meet Edina's Hometown Heroes

Edina is made up of people who pride themselves with making the city a great place for living, learning, raising families and doing business.

Bill Bryan

Auto mechanics put their time and expertise into ensuring cars can safely and reliably go from 0 to 60 mph in mere seconds. Pool mechanics do them one better, though: adjusting Olympic-sized pools from 56 to a swimmable 82 degrees in a matter of mere hours.

This is true, at least, in the case of Bill Bryan, City Mechanic at the Edina Aquatic Center. Monitoring the water temperature of the facility’s 6,800-gallon indoor pool is one of the more visible and easiest appreciated of Bryan’s many duties there.

Pool maintenance is much more involved than patrons typically realize, however.

“For sanitation’s sake, chlorine and other chemicals need to be fed into the system constantly,” Bryan said. “The balance can never be off; it requires some manner of attention from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.” For Bryan’s part, that typically entails four poolside visits each day.

Sanitation and safety are of paramount importance at the Aquatic Center. Bryan checks regularly to confirm that hand railings stay secure and stair treads remain tight. He also inspects slides and play structures on a daily basis.

“My motivation for being so thorough is that I don’t want anyone to have a bad experience on our watch – not so much as a sliver,” Bryan explained.

Bryan also collaborates closely with the contractors brought in on a host of upkeep and upgrade projects. “For instance, our pool’s boiler is dormant for nine months of the year,” Bryan noted. “But in the summer, we push it to the max. If the boiler shows signs of breaking down, I am the one to make the call to bring in outside help.”

Bryan started with the City of Edina in 2001, and his contributions will leave a lasting impact on the Aquatic Center. He played an instrumental role in the early stages of the ongoing FlowRider surf-simulator installation project, functioning as liaison between the designer, the manufacturer and City staff.

Next time you visit the Edina Aquatic Center, be thankful for all the hard behind-the-scenes work put in year round by Bill Bryan and his peers. They’re Hometown Heroes.

9 of 17 Heroes

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Government Corner

Under state law, a city with a population of more than 15,000 must annually notify its residents of the positions and salaries of its three highest-paid employees. As of Jan. 1, 2013, those positions in Edina are City Manager, $156,043; Police Chief, $129,958; and Director of Engineering, $129,958.

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The City of Edina
4801 W. 50th St., Edina, MN 55424
mail@EdinaMN.gov 952-927-8861

© 2013 City Of Edina, Minnesota