POULSBO — In three different communities, the same story is playing out: school district’s swimming pools are looking for a niche to fill. Now the districts have become brothers in arms.

Greg Schmidt, aquatics manager for the North Kitsap School District, has joined forces with the Central Kitsap and South Kitsap school districts to determine the best way to market their swimming pools to the communities they serve.

“This year, we’re taking a different approach,” Schmidt said. He recently attended one of Central Kitsap’s swimming pool task force meetings and was struck with how similar their situations are.

All three facilities are heavily subsidized and have come under scrutiny as school districts face consistently tighter budgets. Budgets that have less wiggle room every year as state funds become more scarce and student enrollment declines.

With an overall budget of about $395,000, with $304,000 going for staff salaries, the North Kitsap pool relies on about $157,000 in district subsidies to function.

Schmidt said the struggle lies in deciding whether the pools should specialize in being recreational facilities, or make names for themselves in the competitive arena. He acknowledges that the Bainbridge Island Aquatic Center has the Kitsap County waterpark market cornered. What he’d like to see is the NK Community Pool to find its niche, too.

“We always need to keep in mind what our niche is and keep changing it to fit the community’s needs,” he said. The pool relies on fitness classes, swim team, synchronized swimming team and lessons to stay afloat. One void it could fill for the community lies in recreational lap swimming.

“We need more lap swimmers. We usually have five lap swimmers for four lanes. You get a lap to yourself or have to share it with one other swimmer. I’d like to see the lap lanes have four to six people in them all day,” he said.

The other facilities, too, face these issues. The task force is currently in its infancy, but Schmidt believes whatever comes out of the meetings will carry more clout if the three districts work together.

Nancy Moffatt, executive director of finance and operations for NKSD, said a combined task force is a beneficial arrangement for all districts involved. The districts are considering hiring a consultant, and pooling resources would make the burden lighter on everyone.

For now, there are plans in the works to increase the pool’s visibility in the community, including lobbying to host a chamber after hours and tapping into the birthday party market.

“I think we have to find a way to make a better partnership with the community. I would hate to see people in this part of the country not be able to swim or have swim lessons,” Moffatt said.