Claudius Crozet Park will try to add a removable dome over the pool to make the facility a year-round aquatics center, park board officials decided last month. The park will put up $200,000 towards the cost of the structure and will try to raise another $200,000 from the community to make the project a reality.
The park’s long-range planning committee created a new name, the P.A.R.C., the Crozet Park Aquatic and Recreation Center, and a logo to promote the campaign. The new facility would provide affordable year-round swimming and fitness programming for families in western Albemarle and beyond.
A removable dome has been a dream of park leaders since the pool was built in 1997, according to board member Kelly Strickland, who is leading the effort.
Kelly, a civil engineer and father of three, has been involved with the project since 2004, working to improve the park and create a master plan that ultimately will include walking trails, basketball and tennis courts, a skate park, along with the aquatic and recreation center.
Kelly said the drive continues the spirit shown by the families who established and built Crozet Park in the 1950s. “Our park has grown over the years to offer a truly unique experience, community-owned and serving an extensive and diverse public. There are few other spaces available in our county that offer this commitment to community involvement, families, and fitness,” he said.
The fundraising campaign will focus first on the pool dome and the goal will be to have the pool operational for the 2010 winter season, Strickland said. The next phase of the campaign will aim at raising $800,000 to convert the existing park building into a recreation center that will offer fitness equipment, classes, after-school and camp programs, and community space for healthy lifestyle workshops. The Crozet P.A.R.C. will be a special place, open to all, regardless of ability or income, he said.
To learn more, drop by the project’s booth at the Crozet Music Festival October 2-4 or at the Crozet Arts and Crafts Festival October 10 and 11. To make a donation online, visit the park’s website at www.crozetpark.org and click on the Crozet P.A.R.C. campaign tab.
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Having been a vendor at the park’s Arts & Crafts festival for several years, I have often joked that all the park needed was a dome over it! Seriously, though, I hope this all works out; I have seen the park improve much in the seven years I have been going there and it sounds as though that trend will continue
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