Watch the full News Conference HERE.
June 26, 2019 – Tossing a beach ball into the activity pool surrounded by excited young children, Westchester County Executive George Latimer announced that Sprain Ridge Park is ready for summer fun – just in time for the 2019 Season. Complete with extensive repairs to the activity pool, an updated spray deck, a brand new on-site playground and a renovated bath house, Latimer invited residents to get out and enjoy the park July 4 weekend and throughout the summer. Sprain Ridge activity pool and spray deck as well as the other County pools and beaches open on a full summer schedule beginning this Friday, June 28.
Latimer said: “The most important thing for us was to make sure that these pools were constructed carefully, and correctly. As disappointed as we were to close the activity pool last season, we are thrilled to finally open it again to children and families to enjoy this summer. As promised last year, I am here today to open this pool. And, stay tuned for our first ever Movie Night on August 7 with a showing of ‘Incredibles 2.’”
A new playground also replaced a 20+ year old playground, and is located adjacent to the reserved picnic area. The playground features a poured-in-place rubber safety surface that feels ‘bouncy’ under foot, instead of an old-fashioned wood-chip safety surface. A colorful slide and two separate jungle gyms for different age groups have also been added, for 2 to 5-year-olds and 12-year-olds. The playground meets ADA accessibility codes as well as consumer product safety codes, and brings a well-used, aging facility into the 21st century.
The Sprain Ridge bathhouse has been renovated with a new floor that features a slip-resistant surface, and a coating that will make it easier to keep clean. A new walkway has also been paved between the bathhouse and the playground/reserved picnic area.
The Sprain Ridge activity pool was scheduled to open for summer 2018, but was forced to close after the Westchester County Department of Public Works and Transportation (DPW&T) deemed the pool not structurally sound. Work that should have required 12 to 15 months to complete was finished in just six months, and as a result the materials did not have enough time to cure, leading to cracking and ruptured pipes underground. The County then closed the pool for another season. After working through the summer and fall of 2018, in addition to the spring of 2019 to make renovations, Latimer declared the pool ready for visitors and opened the activity pool and spray deck, noting that the competition pool would open by the end of July.
Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins said: “I fought for this particular pool with my colleagues on the Board of Legislators as Chair and as a Legislator, to make sure that this particular pool, which was an important cog in the vision of the parks department, would be here. This took a tremendous amount of work, but it is all part of the vision that County Executive Latimer has laid out for all the things we are trying to accomplish in Westchester County.”
Commissioner of DPW&T Hugh Greechan said: “The public works design and construction team is excited for the completion of this challenging project on time and on budget, and looks forward to the completion of the competition pool by the end of July.”
Deputy Commissioner of the Parks Department Peter Tartaglia said: “Summer is here and we are happy to invite the public back to Sprain Ridge activity pool and spray deck, and to our new playground. We expect great crowds this summer at all of pools and beaches as we approach the July 4th holiday.”
Legislator MaryJane Shimsky said: “I think the moral of this story is, anything that is worth doing is worth doing right. It took us a lot of years to get here, but with a lot of strong advocacy we finally got our new pool.”
Legislator Gordon Burrows said: “I welcome the fact that our County Executive showed the same kind of fervor that we all share in having this pool open, and I commend our County Executive Latimer, our Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins and his entire team for getting this done today. This is a very essential park and pool to the people of this community.”