Major renovations to the Coudersport Borough pool are on hold as officials await word on receiving a grant to support the project.
In the meantime, Borough Manager Bev Morris said the project has received more than $200,000 in donations in recent months. The contributions would be put with the expected approximately $250,000 state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources grant.
Word on that funding should be received in the late summer or early fall, she said. If awarded the grant, the borough would be required to provide matching funds.
Morris called the amount of donations overwhelming. “We feel so blessed that this community is supporting this,” she said.
For example, JKLM Energy donated $40,000, Coudersport Elementary School students donated more than $7,000 and a high school student donated $1,072 as part of her senior project. Other individuals have donated smaller amounts toward the project, such as $25, she said.
All told, the pool project is expected to cost around half a million dollars, Morris said. She said she is hoping that the pool off Maple Street could reopen next summer. The recreation area is currently closed this summer.
This winter, borough workers may install Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant restrooms in the bathhouse, remove the old liner in the one pool and disconnect the filtration system, among other tasks. The liner hasn’t been replaced in 20 years.
A walkway between the main pool and the wading pool needs to be widened; that section of the recreation site is currently not in compliance with the state Department of Health, Morris said.
Every year, the local government pays between $50,000 to $55,000 to maintain the pool, pay utilities and the lifeguards and to purchase the chemicals.
Overall, the pool brings in around $20,000 a year to the borough. Admission to the pool depends on a variety of factors, including day passes and family passes.
During a typical summer the pool is open every day, depending on the weather. In 2016, about 130 children and adults took swimming lessons. Open swim has been offered at the pool, as has water aerobics, she said.
