Guest Viewpoint: Elmira must capitalize on state funding to restore Brand Park Pool

Recently, Governor Hochul announced that she and the state legislature have agreed to allocate $160 million to build or restore swimming pools throughout our state. This money could prove to be an incredibly advantageous windfall for Elmira, and I urge the city council to consider this opportunity to restore Brand Park Pool.

Swimming pools offer great value to cities, and BPP is an especially important asset to Elmira.

Like pools throughout the U.S., BPP attracted children and adults in droves. They spent the entire day there, in a safe place. They learned to swim, they socialized and played with their friends, they met and interacted with people of diverse backgrounds, and they stayed out of mischief.

I have spoken with lots a people who used to go to BPP. Their experiences are outstanding memories, mostly unforgettable stories of shared moments of joy and friendship, but sometimes of comfort. Some, for example, told me that they went there to get away from life’s troubles, and studies have shown that pools serve to promote mental as well as physical health. They are therapeutic.

No other park activities come anywhere near providing the enormous advantages of swimming pools. No other activities strengthen our democracy and build community as do public pools.

Historic preservation in Elmira should continue

Cities and towns in America are thriving because of historic restoration. They often work with Main Street America, a subdivision of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which has a proven record of reviving the urban fabric of thousands of towns across America.

Its fundamental approach is twofold: the restoration of downtowns and historic preservation. Downtowns, which drive the tax base when they flourish, and historic buildings give character and charm to cities. People want to be there, to work and live there. They are walkable, and they create a sense of place that is inviting, attractive and alive with diverse, small businesses. They are diametrical opposites of malls.

Elmira has made some wonderful advances in its downtown recently. Entrepreneurs have rehabbed and retrofitted numerous historic buildings that have made an appealing, economic impact on the city, and Elmira has undertaken to restore the clock tower on City Hall, a necessary if only a bit delayed endeavor.

These efforts are not enough.

We need to pay attention to buildings like Elmira’s Brand Park Pool, which, through its rich history, its unique architecture, its imposing character, and its attraction endows the city with great value. Restoring it will show the Southside that the city cares about it, and it will stimulate further investment and improvement in that part of Elmira.

If we get this grant, the benefits will be invaluable to recreation, economic development, the sense of community, and the revitalization of the Southside, as well as to our great heritage.

More: As demise nears, a look back at how Brand Park Pool was created by Elmira residents

State programs offers new hope for Elmira public pool

New York’s proposal to build and restore more public pools is part of a national trend that acknowledges the importance of swimming lessons to combat deaths by drowning in the U.S., particularly among minority groups, and deaths from excessive heat. It also addresses the need to support and improve underserved communities, communities like Elmira’s 5th district.

The state appropriation is particularly relevant to Elmira. It provides money for restoration of our rare, historic pool and architectural gem in an area of the city that needs investment and incentives. In addition, it underwrites lifeguard training and swimming lessons/water safety classes in a program that would partner Elmira with CCC in a win-win endeavor. The swimming lessons could be held either at BPP or at the CCC pool.

More: Can building more pools curb child drownings? NY pushes for $150M for safe swimming sites

The appropriation would also help increase the number of lifeguards, which declined significantly throughout the country during the pandemic, not only by underwriting their training but also by paying their wages. And we might consider supplementing the wages with an incentive like the one in Philadelphia, which holds a “Philly Phreeze,” where participants jump in the water in winter to raise bonuses for their lifeguards. That event has substantially helped recruit lifeguards.

Finally, the grant would provide transportation for kids to the pool for swimming lessons and promote community swim classes.

Today, governments throughout the U.S. are incentivizing the building and restoring of swimming pools. They recognize the great public good that pools bring to our communities, and they are even finding new uses for them. In Philadelphia, for example, which has begun to restore its public pool system, one pool offers Aquatic Zumba exercise for seniors.

Let’s save a rare and magnificent treasure in the fabric of Elmira, and let’s make swimming a public good here, not a luxury. This opportunity is too good to let go.

-- Jim Hassell is an Elmira resident. To submit a Guest Viewpoint column, email cpotter@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Elmira must capitalize on state funding to restore Brand Park Pool