Company gets contract to raze the North Pool

A new pool should be built by the summer.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The city's Park and Recreation Commission approved a $66,900 contract with a Pittsburgh company to demolish the North Pool.
The commission approved the contract Thursday with Crump Inc. Crump's price was the lowest among proposals submitted by three companies for the work.
The pool demolition project should be done in less than three months, said Joseph R. McRae, the city's park and recreation director.
The pool demolition is part of a proposed $1.9 million state-of-the-art water park project at the Tod Lane location on the city's North Side.
Building new one
After the pool is demolished, the next phase is to build a new pool that should be finished in time for the summer recreation season, McRae said.
An inspection late last year by ES & amp;C International of Youngstown showed a major loss of water from the pool. Wet spots on properties near the pool indicated soil saturation that could damage nearby areas.
In December, city council agreed to permit the park and recreation commission to solicit informal bids and hire a company for no more than $90,000 to demolish the pool because of concerns about the water loss.
But a month later, council rescinded legislation to bypass formal bidding because some members said the demolition isn't an emergency. The formal bidding process delayed the process by one month.
Repair work
The city hired Kreidler Construction Co. of North Lima in November for $81,000 to replace the roof at the pool bathhouse. When it rains, water pours into the building's interior, McRae said. That work will be done in about a month, he said.
The water park project, to be done in phases over the next few years, would include a lap pool, slides and splash pads that shoot streams of water, McRae said.
The North Pool opened in 1939, and for a number of years it was among six public pools in the city.
Today, there are two city pools. The other, Borts Pool, is on the West Side on Belle Vista Avenue.
skolnick@vindy.com