New pool in town's future?

The New Millennium Sports Committee is among those who feel the former Town of Orange Public Works site would make a great public pool location.
The committee, formed back in 2006 to build a comprehensive all-ages public recreation facility, has their eye on the former town shop property between Montevista and Peliso avenues. According to committee member Don Faulconer, the space would be the perfect place to build a public pool large enough for the high school swim team-it currently travels to Charlottesville for practice.
"A private donor has funded the drawing of a site design to show it can be done [and a pool can fit in the space]," he said. "It's a 25-meter pool with five or six lanes plus space for 50 parking spaces," he estimated.
According to town planner Joshua Bateman, these two uses line up perfectly with what some town residents desire for the space. During a public meeting held in September, residents gave their opinions on what the former town shop space should be used for; a pool and parking for school events were the top recommendations. Out of 56 citizen votes, parking received 20 and the pool received 23.
However, according to Faulconer, the actual building of a pool is a long way off and will require tremendous local support.
"Right now we are trying to imagine our way forward," he said. "We just had the Rapidan Run fundraiser race and we are going to need lots of support with cost estimates, etc. Our hope is that if we can pay for it, we can get the site for it."
As for the other pieces of their original recreation facility idea, which included indoor and outdoor pools, a skate park, a fitness trail and a track and field renovation, Faulconer said those may come later and in other areas.
"When the town shop property presented itself it became clear that we need to pare down our expectations," he said. "'Looking at the public pool [aspect], we [saw] that it was the most useful and most needed component. The other pieces may come as they present themselves."
Currently, the only public pool in Orange County is located in Gordonsville. There are also two private pools-the Country-Town Pool and the Lake of the Woods Pool.