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Volume 2, No. 10. June 14, 2002

New Arrivals

It’s a swimming pool!
Lakemont Park in Altoona, Pennsylvania, announces the arrival of a swimming pool, May 24, 2002. Measurements: 9,000 square feet (2,727 square meters), maximum depth of 4 feet (1.2 meters).

Lakemont has come full circle. The 108-year-old park for a long time had a swimming pool that occupied much of an island. The pool was filled in under the current management in the early 1990s, and in its place a waterslide complex and zero-entry kiddie pool were installed. Parents, however, wanted a swimming pool of their own. “We got a lot of requests from adults for a place where they can cool off as well,” said Barry Kumpf, the park’s general manager.

As a capital improvement choice, the new pool further delineates Lakemont on the south side of Altoona from Del Grosso's up the highway in Tipton, just north of Altoona. “They’ve got a good waterpark and kids pool, but not a swimming pool,” Kumpf said. “I thought we could do something different and get market share from it.”

Not on the day it opened, unfortunately. With the Northeast still in the grip of a late spring cold snap, the pool opened that Friday to sunny skies but cold temperatures and few swimmers. On Saturday, the only people at the pool were the two lifeguards wearing three layers of clothing. As the weather warmed over the three-day weekend, the crowds grew, maxing out on Monday when a Memorial Day $5 all-you-can-ride-and-eat special drew 12,001 people, and the pool pulled a good portion of that.