Pool reconstruction is swimming along
WAUSA — The long-awaited – and much-needed – Wausa Municipal Swimming Pool construction project is moving forward despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Mayor Bill Schumacher.
However, even if major progress is made, the community won’t be able to enjoy the benefits of the new-look pool until at least 2021.
Work has been done on the bath house, while the east end of the pool has been torn out, the mayor said.
“They are waiting to pour the footings,” Schumacher said. “They need an electrical inspector to inspect it before they do that. That’s as far as we are on the pool.”
Despite the pandemic and multiple social distancing expectations, the mayor said the project has been able to make waves.
“They are staying on schedule pretty good,” Schumacher said. “They haven’t stopped anything because of the COVID, and they have all the while been working on it. The decking has been all poured out and old bath house was torn down and got a new one up – all it has is the cement walls – there are no windows, roofs or doors on it.”
Schumacher said they aimed to open the pool by this summer, but now it “realistically” will likely be shut down this whole season and hopefully will be done by the fall.
“We won’t be able to use it even if it were done,” “If we wanted to open it in June, we still wouldn’t have been able to open up until the middle of July because that’s what the governor recommends (due to the pandemic). We are trying to stay on things and keep it moving it along. If we say there is no hurry, then they put it on the back burner and things don’t get done.”
Admittedly, the pool was a mess before the construction began.
Water from the pool leaked out onto the surface and grass, the bath house was run down
Original pool committee member Sarah Anderson said the project was a long-time coming.
“I haven’t been there to see what it looks like,” she said. “The pool was very run down so this pool committee got together and was trying to get a new pool, instead of fixing it up and there were a lot of people in town wanting a new pool. The town board voted to fix this one up. They decided to make it zero-entry and heated so they did go by some of the surveys and what people wanted.”
Schumacher is happy the pool is closer to being done, looking better and saving the community money.
“I am very pleased and excited that they are able to stay with it,” Schumacher said. “It was a very big thing because the pool needed work done on it. We didn’t feel like there would be no reason to destroy and start from scratch and would be $1M on top of what we have right now. Right now, we have put in about a $1M when it’s said and done.
Having a quality pool is a huge plus for the community, Schumacher said.
“Just to have the pool in our community is a big asset.”
Schumacher said a donation and a few grants have helped alleviate the financial burden off the community’s residents.
Anderson said that funds that were raised to go toward the pool will be used to help add to its new look when the construction wraps up.
The work continues Mid-America Pool Renovation employees continue their work at the Wausa swimming pool. The old bath house has been torn out and the east end of the pool is now being worked on. When it’s all completed, the pool will be a zero entry facility.
