Damaged roof at Bluffton pool should be removed, Beaufort County officials say
Beaufort County Parks and Recreation is set to bring a proposal to County Council Monday for updates to Bluffton’s indoor pool on Pritchard Street, which was closed over fears the roof could cave in.
The decision to close the pool in February was made after an assessment was done for the county’s master plan to update all four of its pools, county spokesperson Chris Ophardt said. The structural deterioration that was found on the building’s roof put it at risk for a possible collapse in high winds or heavy rainfall, according to a county press release at the time of the closure. The new proposal, which is estimated to cost around $1 million, would see the roof above the pool temporarily removed while the locker rooms remain covered.
“They’ll make the necessary repairs if that roof needs repairs, but the majority of the damage was the part above the pool itself because of the chlorine,” Ophardt said. “There will still be indoor spaces, but the pool itself will be outdoors.”
A new roof for the pool is part of the county’s parks and recreation department’s master plan to update its pools. Because the plan is still under evaluation, Ophardt did not give a timeline for when the new roof could be expected.
The money for the roof removal will come from the county’s estimated $7.5 million budget surplus, he said. If accepted, the pool is estimated to open within four to six months. Extra hours have been added to the Battery Creek indoor pool to accommodate swimmers.
The closure of the pool, home to adolescent swimming lessons for the Lowcountry Autism Foundation and a practice spot for the Bluffton Fins swim team, has been “devastating,” a parent previously told the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette. The foundation has found a private homeowner who offered up their heated outdoor pool for the next three weeks of swimming lessons, according to its swim program organizer, Sophia Townes.
