Village Officials in Carbon are hoping when the pool refills in the spring a new, improved outdoor pool will be in the pipe.
The Carbon pool task force was created two years ago to investigate the possibility of replacing the current pool. With the recent focus on making the Carbon Centennial celebrations as big as possible, those plans were put on hold.
However, now that things have calmed down, a new pool is back on the agenda.
“We’ll be starting to fundraise here soon once we have the design done,” said Carbon CAO Debra Grosfield. “We have a couple designs we’re trying to move forward with it.”
At the moment the plans for a new pool are in an early stage. The task force is working with the Curling Club and Ag Society to create a new facility that could be utilized by more than one group.
“We just need all the community organizations in the area in agreement. We want to make sure we’re all on the same page. We want to build a facility that can serve all the different organizations and needs. It’ll be a building everybody can use. You could have outdoor swimming in the summer and curling in the winter,” said Grosfield.
The groups met earlier in November to discuss the project. A basic design has been settled upon. The pool will remain outdoors, but will be attached to a multi-use facility with a common area, change rooms, and lounge.
There are no concerns with the current pool, but there are a few areas where the aging pool is lacking.
“The biggest things is it’s not too kid friendly. All the new pools have zero entry [beach style entry], splashers, and more. Right now, the shallow end is a meter deep. We want to make it more accessible for all ages. There’s a little bit of a slide, but it would be nice to have a diving board,” said Grosfield.
In addition to the current pool being antiquated in its design, the hope is a new pool will be able to accommodate more users, especially from the Village’s campground.
“We have been to capacity quite a bit this summer, which is great, but it could be a bit bigger. It would be nice, because our campgrounds are always busy,” said Grosfield.
For the time being, those involved in the project will be looking for grants to help pay for the project. There is no definite timeline for construction to begin. The Village is hoping to address infrastructure concerns first.
