The DeKalb Park District is seeking public input on renaming Hopkins Pool.

On Thursday, the DeKalb Park Board unanimously rejected a measure that would have renamed the pool facility Hopkins Harbor Waterpark.

Chrissy Tluczek, the district’s superintendent of recreation, said staff have been contemplating a change to the pool facility’s name for over a year.

“This is something that we’ve held dear to us,” Tluczek said. “But we want to pay homage to the town and everything, but we also want it to be marketable to constituents outside of DeKalb, Sycamore, DeKalb County area.”

How to rename the pool facility didn’t appear to the district all at once, Tluczek said.

“Honestly, we had been sitting on a different name for probably the better part of a year,” she said.

Tluczek said the district has contemplated other names.

Other names discussed were Barb City Bay, Hopkins Family Aquatic Center, and Hopkins Community Pool.

One idea emerged with staff’s recommendation: Hopkins Harbor Waterpark.

Tluczek said renaming the facility is intended to help “differentiate it a little bit from just Hopkins Pool,” as it has been traditionally known.

Commissioner Dean Bourdages said he isn’t a fan of staff’s recommendation.

“It makes it seem like DeKalb is a waterway, and we’re not,” Bourdages said.

Commissioner Tia Anderson said she, too, didn’t like staff’s recommendation.

“It was just something about the word ‘harbor’ just didn’t resonate with me,” Commissioner Tia Anderson said.

In leading up to Thursday’s board meeting, Bourdages said he turned to Commissioner Brian Tobin to run some ideas past him.

Bourdages said Tobin had brought up a great idea.

“Have we ever thought about maybe putting it out to the community?” Bourdages said. “Maybe with some names as choices, or they can do a write-in type of situation.”

Others on the park board expressed similar sentiments.

“I would definitely also agree,” Commissioner Michelle Foster said. “Let’s have community input.”

“Even if it comes out that they chose Hopkins Harbor, that’s fine,” Tobin said. “At least they’ve had an opportunity to be in the process.”

The district intends to seek public input on renaming the pool facility in the future.

Also at the meeting, officials were briefed on the status of the work underway at Hopkins Pool.

The timeline to reopen Hopkins Pool has been pushed out to July. Previously, the district was set on a June reopening date.

Executive Director Paul Zepezauer said it can be difficult to gauge the project’s timeline.

“Actually, the last two weeks, July has really been the timeline,” Zepezauer said. “Of course, that’s weather dependent.”