The community pool has long been an important piece of Minersville’s Fourth Street recreation complex. The complex is a beautiful nine-acre multi-use recreation facility that includes three baseball fields, an outdoor pavilion, playground, soccer field, basketball court, and a walking path with a pine tree canopy extending over much of the trail. But by the summer of 2004, continuous repairs to the pool became too costly for the community to bear and the pool had to be closed. When news of the closing reached the community, a “Save the Minersville Pool” committee was immediately formed of individuals from Minersville and nearby communities.
The committee completed a feasibility study to evaluate the existing conditions and compare the cost of repairing the existing pool to the cost of building a new one in the same location. The results showed that renovations would eliminate all of the safety and accessibility issues that existed with the old structure.
With a small population of only 5,000 residents, Minersville lacked the money needed for repairs. However, a combination of local community development dollars, private funds, and a $400,000 Keystone Fund grant made the necessary renovations possible.
When faced with the dilemma of closing Minersville’s swimming pool or spending nearly $2 million dollars to renovate the facility, Minersville Mayor David Dutcavich and the Borough Council opted to keep the 54-year old community landmark open.
“Fifty years ago, there were several public and private swimming pools in our area,” Dutcavich said. “But maintenance is costly, and is rarely outpaced by revenue. Our pool was the only one left.”
Dutcavich committed his mayoral salary to the effort, while businesses and private donors also got involved.
“Certainly, we have a long way to go in paying for the pool upgrades; but the Keystone Fund made it possible for us to proceed quickly,” Dutcavich said.
In its inaugural season, the Minersville Community Pool broke attendance records, and it continues to serve the community as a vital space for fun and relaxation.