Holding onto history
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September 20, 2020
Marione Martin
Top Photos (Left to Right): The kiddie pool, where innumberable toddlers have splashed in delight, needs to have a separate circulation system; Edges of seams in the pool appear to be crumbling. They've been sealed each year, but the pool continues to leak. Bottom Photo: The end of a pool gutter shows evidence of concrete repairs; Narrow hallways in the swimming pool bathhouse need to be wider to accommodate the disabled; The pump house beam on the right is displaced at least three inches and is being supported by wire.
Sitting silent and empty, the Alva Municipal Swimming Pool contains nothing but memories in the September sun. Built as a WPA project, the pool has weathered 80 years of history. Alva kids learned to swim in the pool. Their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have enjoyed the cooling sparkling water in this space.
Constructed when concrete was inexpensive, the pool has outlived its builders. Over the years, the structure has required many coats of paint and many repairs to cracks and seams. Despite efforts to keep it going, the swimming pool has reached a crossroads. Can it be resu...
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