ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, June 27, 1996 TAG: 9606270025
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG
SOURCE: KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
The new Montgomery County pool will open today, county officials say. And this time, they mean it.
Ceremonies for the new pool, beside the recreation offices on County Drive across from the Corning Inc. plant, will be held at 1 p.m. today.
The pool's opening, originally set for Memorial Day weekend, was delayed mostly by construction days lost to bad weather and also the death of Martin O'Toole, the county engineer who was overseeing the project.
Today, county officials will make brief remarks about the history of the pool and will honor O'Toole's work by presenting a resolution of appreciation to his widow, Eileen O'Toole.
After a ribbon-cutting ceremony, people are encouraged to dive in and enjoy.
Montgomery County has been without a public outdoor pool for two summers, after a faulty underground valve and hard winter weather led to serious damage to the original 1970s-era pool.
The new pool, built where the former one once stood, will feature a giant frog that sports a red tongue as a sliding board, a two-tube water slide, a giant mushroom with cascading water and a 20-foot diameter island with palm trees.
A volleyball court, geysers to send streams of water in the air and a baby pool complete with water squirting from a whale's blowhole round out the amenities of the project.
Jeff Lunsford, assistant county administrator, said the pool has come in about $3,000 under the $450,000 that was budgeted for the project. The Rockville, Md., contractor that installed the pool has given the county some additional decking at no cost to make amends for the project being finished later than was agreed, Lunsford said.
LENGTH: Short : 41 linesby CNB