The city of Galveston, Texas broke ground on the community’s first-ever swimming pool on September 20th, 2016. The new pool, which will open the summer of 2017, will cost 4.1 million dollars.
Galveston, Texas is an island city located off the coast of Texas. It consists of two islands, Galveston and Pelican islands. They are most known for their tourism industry. The city contains nearly 50,000 people, which makes it even more surprising that this is the first municipal pool on the island.
The new municipal pool comes as a result of Galveston’s new Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Master Plan. This plan is an attempt to increase the amount of parks and other community areas for the city. The 4.1 million dollars used to build the pool have all been fund-raised by the Industrial Development Corporation, Better Parks for Galveston, a grant from Texas Parks & Wildlife, the Neighborhood Revitalization Fund, and numerous foundation grants and private donations.
This project will provide fitness classes, private party rentals, and swimming lessons; as well as the opportunity to offer community safety courses to include, first aid, CPR, and lifeguard training at minimal cost to Galveston residents. The pool will have a play area with a slide for recreational use, as well as an 8-lane, 25-yard training pool. This training pool will be the first municipal training pool on Galveston island.
Finally something for the community! For years, construction projects have been hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues catered and priced towards tourists! Let’s hope they don’t ruin this for the locals.
Could put up a corrugated fiber glass wall as had been used in places around Houston. Just heat it it has been done successfully. Just have to get the swimmers in the area interested in training more. Still progress.
Well done
Outstanding news for an outstanding community!
And it’s a yards only pool… at least build 25yx25m and make it so you can race/train either. Pennies now millions later
The last thing they think or care about is training or racing in this pool. It’ll be too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. Might have 2 months total of decent training temperatures.
Might be time for those south Texans to toughen up if that can’t train outdoors year round. Here in Northern California they train outdoors year round in temperatures that are colder than Galveston in the winter and very nearly as hot in the summer
Nothing to do with toughening up when the pool isn’t heated. They built a brand new pool in League City without a heater, which was essentially just a new version of the 88 degree water pool they already had.
Well then, if they’re not smart enough to build heated outdoor pools, I’m not sure what anyone can do
Having just moved to Galveston from Northern California where I swam year round, I can testify that it should be doable in Galveston. Keep the pool open year round & let swimmers decide when they want to swim. Operators may be surprised by the number of swimmers in the cold & rain.