Charles City pool opens with upgrades completed

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Charles City’s municipal swimming pool at Lions Field Park opened for the season on Monday, having gone through significant repairs and updates while closed during its off season.

The weather was 70 degrees and overcast when the pool opened Memorial Day afternoon, but the heated water held steady at 80.

Almost $1 million in repairs and upgrades were made between the time the pool closed last fall and reopened this week, including significant concrete work, mechanical system replacements and improvements to meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards.

Many of the changes are not visible, but were designed to add another 20 to 30 years of life to the facility, which first opened in 1991 as one of the more advanced “aquatic centers” in the area.

Improvements included repairing expansion joints in the pool floor and walls, fixing gutter systems and leak-proofing surge and plunge tanks.

Mechanical upgrades replaced the original recirculation and water treatment systems, including a new filter and variable-speed drives on pumps to improve efficiency and longevity.

Of the changes that are visible, a new climbing wall has been added to the deep end of the pool, and most of the facility got a fresh coat of paint, including the cascading water “mushroom” in the shallow end of the pool.

The Parks and Recreation Board is considering adding additional pool features as funding becomes available.