Work On New Horowitz Pool In Vernon Now 'In The Home Stretch'

VERNON, CT — Concrete for the deck of the new Horowitz Pool at Henry Park was poured this week as work progresses on the facility.

Citing weather volatility, a factor that has slowed the work all summer, town officials were hesitant about offering up a firm opening day. There was optimism, however.

"We're in the home stretch," Vernon Town Administrator Michael Purcaro said.

Anticipating the concrete drying quickly, Purcaro added, "All hands are on deck to get things ready."

In early April 2023, the Vernon Town Council voted to award a $1.247 million contract to Juliano's Pools to replace Horowitz Pool. A pool with a locally fashioned commercial strength liner and in-house clubhouse renovations will maintain the traditional look of the venerable aquatic facility while bringing it into the 21st century, officials have said.

Horowitz Pool opened to the public in August 1953 and was in service through 2019. In the early 1990s, the town undertook a renovation project "to extend the pool's useful life."

Town officials said that Parks and Recreation and Department of Public Works staff members spent "thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours" maintaining and improving the pool over the past several years, but the structure aged "beyond its useful life."

Since 2018, Mayor Daniel Champagne, council members and town staffers have examined a variety of options, including replacing Horowitz Pool. In addition to a splash pad, another idea was a year-round indoor aquatic facility and a seasonal outdoor concrete pool. The projected cost of the indoor facility and outdoor concrete pool was in the millions of dollars.

In November 2022, requests for proposals were sent out and the town conducted a series of walk-throughs of the pool site for all contractors interested in submitting bids. A plan from Juliano's, submitted in December 2022, won out and the funding was approved four months later, officials said.

The pool liner is 60 mils thick, according to pool company owner Brian Juliano. A residential pool liner is 20 mils thick and a cold water wetsuit is about 6.5 mills thick.

Champagne said the proposal from Juliano's is a "cost-effective way to replace Horowitz Pool."

The projected lifespan of the 60-mil pool liner is about 15 years and rips and tears can be easily repaired through a process called thermal membrane welding, which leaves the repair as strong or stronger than the liner, Juliano said. He learned to swim at the original pool.

The project is being paid for using American Rescue Plan Act grant funds.

For now, supervised swimming is being offered at the Community Pool, 375 Hartford Turnpike, and Newhoca Beach, 185 Grier Road.

Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. They will be the only two local swimming venues with lifeguards.