Daily fees, prohibitive hours and a lack of special events may be keeping the Belmont Complex's pool from making a bigger splash in Armstrong County, according to a group of residents discussing ways to improve the pool Tuesday night.
A group of about 20 people, along with representatives from the Armstrong County Planning office and a consultant, met in an attempt to gauge what might make the 16,500-square-foot pool more attractive to visitors.
“We're looking for the best ways to keep it open and running efficiently,” said consultant Bob Good of Pashek Associates. “Municipal pools in Western Pennsylvania don't usually bring in enough to cover all of their expenses, but we want to find ways to bring in more revenue.”
The meeting on Tuesday was the first of two public meetings to take public input on what features would attract more visitors to the East Franklin pool. Among suggestions are a splash zone, spray park or other water activities.
It's part of a $60,000 feasibility study partially funded by a $30,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). The remainder is being paid by Armstrong County.
While the study is looking at adding features and possibly using portions of the pool area for different activities, such as dek hockey, most comments Tuesday focused on minor adjustments to bolster visitors.
Kittanning resident Janice Reesman, a member of the Belmont Complex's pool, said the pool's daily $6 admission fee may be keeping some people from swimming on a regular basis. The fee provides up to six hours of swimming.
“It needs to be more affordable, because for a family of four, after eating, it could easily cost more than $30 for an afternoon,” she said. “That price doesn't change if people are only here for an hour or two, so it's just too much. People can't stay all day, but have to pay for the full six hours.”
During the summer, the pool is open until 6 p.m., which may also be keeping people away.
“A lot of people don't get out of work until 5 p.m., and by the time they get home, the pool is closed,” said West Kittanning resident Kim Pivetta.
East Franklin resident Patty McCafferty-Forringer, who has held a pool membership for 55 years, suggested officials consider extending hours to 8 p.m. during the week and possibly later on the weekend.
Belmont Complex Director Gary Montebell said this summer's attendance was the highest the pool has seen for several years, drawing more than 13,000 visitors.
“Once we got though a really rainy June, people started coming out to the pool in droves,” Montebell said. “I expected this to be a very poor summer, but that really wasn't the case.”
Armstrong County Commissioner Bob Bower said the study is meant to help officials learn what the public wants, in an effort to increase pool attendance. The study will also open up the county to more grants through the state, he added.
Bower said the county will begin applying for grants to add features to the pool area once the study is completed. He expects to hold a second public meeting in December and have the study completed by the end of the year.
“With everyone getting backyard pools, the Belmont pool isn't as much of a draw,” Bower said. “Unless we have something more than a pool here, there's really not much reason for them to come.
“We need to make this pool a destination, so we need to make sure we have something more for our children and families to enjoy.”
Kittanning resident Chuck Rupp said there might not be an easy way to improve attendance at the Belmont Pool, but said it is an asset that is an important part of Armstrong County.
“It's more of a quality-of-life issue for the community,” Rupp said, “but at the same time, it needs to be economically viable.”
Brad Pedersen is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-543-1303, ext. 1337, or bpedersen@tribweb.com.
