North Hempstead residents support pool upgrade, oppose slide

New Hyde Park residents have supported a multimillion dollar renovation of the aging Clinton G. Martin Park pool, but prefer a version with fewer amenities than the town originally planned, according to survey results released Tuesday.

The Town of North Hempstead’s June survey assessed the community’s response to two proposals for the outdoor pool’s future. A majority of the survey’s 1,717 respondents voted in favor of some form of renovation but were firmly against adding a water slide, according to a town news release.

“I believe we have a good sense of what the residents want and are willing to pay for,” Supervisor Judi Bosworth said in a news release issued Tuesday. “We will be looking to find a ‘middle of the road’ compromise between both plans.”

Town officials in June presented plans for a $15 million proposal to upgrade the 50-year-old pool that would include a full redesign of the pool and tennis facility, and additional features including locker room improvements, facade renovations, increased shaded area, and a water slide.

In the survey, residents could vote for the $15 million plan, or a reduced $9 million version, which would solely address the pool’s infrastructure and internal components, such as pumps and filters, but not upgrade the facility’s appearance.

Town officials assured the community that with either proposal, the pool’s size and layout, including all lap lanes, would remain the same. Residents could also opt for no renovation, which would effectively shut the pool down after this year’s season. Left unaddressed, the pool’s deteriorating condition would mean its indefinite closure, Bosworth said at the June meeting.

About 40 percent of survey respondents voted for the $15 million plan and 24 percent voted for the $9 million plan, according to the town release.

Based on the survey results, the town will scale back the original proposal to develop a “hybrid version” of both plans to reduce costs while delivering the most necessary parts of the renovation, Bosworth said in a news release.

The project is running behind a timetable presented in June, which called for the plan’s finalization by last month, design finalization by December, and construction completion by June 2018. There are no updates on how this timetable will be affected by the creation of a new hybrid plan, town spokeswoman Rebecca Chent said.

A public meeting is to be held in September to continue discussion about the pool’s renovation.