Pool Issue Could Be Resolved Monday (Update Coming Soon)

Update: Keep an eye on Chatham Patch Tuesday, July 13 for news on the Monday-night Memorial Park and Pool Committee meeting.

One of the most hotly debated issues in the borough over the past couple of months could be settled Monday evening.

The Memorial Park and Pool Committee will host a public forum at Borough Hall at 6 p.m., during which residents will be able to discuss pool renovation plans. A regular Borough Council meeting will follow at 7 p.m., instead of the usual 7:30 p.m.

The committee has met throughout the year to discuss those plans. The pool is old and falling apart and is in need of repair.

Throughout the course of its meetings, the committee has settled on a few things. It has decided to propose moving the kiddie pool—which is one level below the large, main pool—over to where a swingset currently sits. It also wants to convert the current kiddie pool into a lounge-type area.

"If you build a better pool, people will come," committee chairman Gerard Malanga said at a June meeting.

The results of a survey given to borough residents earlier in the year indicated that more people could join if the pool were made nicer.

The committee has also proposed expanding Memorial Park to include a multi-purpose field and where soccer, lacrosse and field hockey could be played.

It would also add parking spaces in the area. The committee has discussed the lack of parking on site at its meetings.

The Borough Council has said it would like to make a decision on what to do with the pool by Monday's meeting.