With renovations complete, the pool at the White County-Sparta Family YMCA set to open for the 2025 season.
YMCA CEO Kyle Goff said visitors will notice something new this year: the bottom of the pool is smoother. Goff said workers applied new plaster on the surface of the 35-year old pool.
“The structural integrity of the surface of the pool was essentially just demolished, it was dilapidated,” Goff said. “It was causing micro fractures in the pool lining, and causing some leakage which leads to a lot of chemical usage and a lot of water usage.”
Goff said the pool’s surface had gotten worse over the past two years.
“What had happened we call etching, it’s essentially just the bottom of the pool starting to denigrate and come apart, so, that was leading to some health hazards,” Goff said. “You worry about kids scraping their foot. The health department had started to notice and they had got it on their radar over the last couple of years.”
Goff said the project cost about $160,000. The City of Sparta managed the process. Goff said the new surface comes with a tenye-ar warranty.
“We’re hopeful to get the full lifespan out of it and we’re are happy with the warranty and we’re happy with the plastering,” Goff said. “So we’re hopeful we won’t have to do this again for a bit, but not 35 years from no.”
Goff said opening day is Memorial Day. Goff said visitors under the age of 18 can swim for free the following day as part of their Community Block Party.
