Mt. Lebanon residents are invited to the first of three public meetings to help plan the municipality's new aquatic center at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Mt. Lebanon Recreation Center, off Cedar Boulevard.

The town has $5.3 million budgeted for a new outdoor pool, which could include water slides and other amenities.

As part of a $32,000 feasibility study, consultants from Counsilman-Hunsaker of St. Louis will conduct the public meetings, recreation director William Moore said.

The project also has an informational Web site at which residents can post their comments. It is at www.leboaquaticcenter.com.

Mt. Lebanon's existing 650,000-gallon outdoor pool was built in 1976.

The pool, which took in $44,000 less than it cost to run in 2005, could become a revenue generator for the municipality if heated water and attractions bring in more swimmers and help book events during normally quiet times, officials said.

Many towns are building full-scale aquatics centers, but there are not many of them in this area, Mr. Moore said, partially because of funding gaps. Pools in other states often are paid for by sales taxes similar to Allegheny County's Regional Asset District tax or state lotteries. Most of the facilities become regional attractions.

The feasibility study seeks to interview three specific groups of people: current users of the pool, people who never use the pool and people who might use the pool if certain features were added, Mt. Lebanon public information officer Susan Morgans said.

The first meeting will educate the public on the nationwide trends in pools and aquatic centers, which are ambitious collections of water slides, lazy rivers and fountains.

Likely to be on the wish list is a heater for swimming on cooler days, Mr. Moore said. Other things include a zero-depth entry, which allows swimmers to enter gradually, as in the ocean.

The first meeting also will collect input.

At the second meeting, different scenarios will be provided and the consultants will seek people's opinions on those.

At the third meeting, the consultant will provide a final report, including cost estimates for a good/better/best proposal for a pool.

The consultant's plan will be submitted to Mt. Lebanon commissioners in the fall, with construction of a pool possible, but not probable, by fall of next year. More likely construction dates are 2008 or 2009, Mr. Moore said.