It’s Imperative That Pleasantville Moves Forward With Pool Project

The Pleasantville Village Board held a special work session on Aug. 1 as an open forum for comment on the proposal to move forward with a new village pool. I attended as a member of the task force appointed four years ago by the board to help develop a future plan for the facility. I have a long history with the pool, having served as a volunteer coach of the village swim team from 1997 to 2008 along with my wife and eventually my two daughters, who grew up to young adults on the team.

Last week’s session produced an extraordinary outpouring of support for the project from a packed house in Village Hall and many more on Zoom. The clear message from the public at the work session was that this is an investment that needs to be made, despite the increase in cost from initial estimates.

I certainly have a bias in support of this project based on my long history of involvement with the pool and its programs, especially the swim team. But my long history is dwarfed by the 100-year history of public swimming in the Village of Pleasantville. The current pool underwent a major upgrade in the 1970s, but its structure and supporting systems have been in severe decline the last several years. Just making the most critical repairs would be costly and would still leave the aging pool vulnerable to eventual closing.

So, the decision comes down to whether the village chooses to have a pool or not. Failure to move forward now means, at best, even higher costs to address the situation in the future and, at worst, the loss of the pool for good, likely well before today’s toddlers splashing in the kiddie pool reach high school.

The Village Board will make a final decision on whether to move forward at its regular meeting on Aug. 12. I urge the public’s support for this important community project.

Jim Kennedy
Pleasantville

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