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Camarillo aquatics center to reopen
$800,000 budgeted for renovation of facility
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More from CamarilloEight-year-old Paul William Laster wasn't sad to see the old Pleasant Valley Pool close for renovations. But most days since, the Camarillo third-grader has asked his mom, "Is it time to go in the pool yet?"
Paul, who has watched the renovation progress since it began in January, is eager to spring off the blue, 1-meter diving board. And he wants to twirl through the new, 65-foot-long, spiral water slide.
"It's so squiggly and it's long, and when you come out of the slide, it makes a big splash," he said.
After months of planning that began last summer, the Pleasant Valley Recreation and Park District is set to reopen the Pleasant Valley Aquatic Center at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The facility has the only municipal swimming pool in Camarillo. It will offer a variety of new programs and activities for children, adults and seniors.
"It's nice to update our facility and to offer something special to our community," said Amy Damron-Stewart, recreation supervisor for the district.
The pool had been open for nearly 40 years before being closed for the renovation. The pool has eight lanes, measures about 75 feet long and holds 210,000 gallons of water, Damron-Stewart said.
Improvements include a concrete pool deck, new plaster and new underground pipes.
"I'm so excited. That pool has needed renovations for a long time," district board member Nancy Bush said.
Board member Paul Rockenstein said the pool will offer more activities for children, such as a junior lifeguard camp and Friday night family swims. The center will also offer swimming lessons and water polo games.
Before the pool closed, from 6,000 to 15,000 people a month used it. It's been the only municipal swimming pool in the city since Freedom Pool near the Camarillo Airport closed in 2003.
The district budgeted more than $800,000 for the renovation. The final cost is not yet available, district General Manager Dan LaBrado said.
Saturday's grand opening will include free water aerobics lessons, swim team tryouts and recreational swimming. The event will conclude at 4 p.m.
The center is at 1030 Temple Ave. For more information, call 482-1996.
Posted by kelly13 on June 17, 2007 at 4:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If this is a public pool, when can the public swim? It is great for classes and organized sports but if you just decide to take your kids swimming it is closed to the public.
The YMCA pool is for memebers only.
It would be nice if you could just wake up some day and feel like going swimming and have a place to go instead of sign up and commit to a long term program at a certain time on a certain day.
Posted by ebrockway on June 18, 2007 at 6:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I think it'd be nice to be able to just swim laps without having to go all the way to Port Hueneme base to do it.
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