Kedron pool plans reach 30% design; March closure planned

The new home for the Kedron pools has reached 30% design. Peachtree City’s Recreation Advisory Group sees the plans at 8 a.m. Monday.

The project replaces the air-supported bubble over the Kedron Aquatic Center with a permanent building. The pools are due to close in March while the work is done.

The floor plan, drawn by WM2A Architects of Macon, is in the agenda packet for Monday’s meeting. The City Council approved the design concept in May.

What the 30% plan shows

The drawing labels these parts of the new pool hall:

• a competition pool of about 4,800 square feet
• an instructional pool of about 2,565 square feet, with an accessible ramp
• spectator seating along both long sides
• a new pool check-in, entrance and counter off the Kedron Fieldhouse lobby
• a splash pad and sun deck of about 1,000 square feet, marked as an “add alternate”

An add alternate is an extra the city can choose to buy once bids come in. It is not guaranteed.

The packet also carries a drawing of the new building from the parking lot. It shows a curved structure joined to the fieldhouse under the name “Kedron Fieldhouse & Aquatic Center.”

What changes for swimmers

Recreation and Special Events Director Harold Layton described the plans to the council on Aug. 27. The minutes of that meeting record these details:

• The large pool is almost 9 feet deep now. The new one will be 7.5 feet, rising to 5 feet.
• Layton said the shallower pool would still meet every requirement for swim teams.
• There will be three on-deck showers, a timing and scoring monitor on each wall, and bleachers by both pools.
• Health codes require more restrooms: three for women and three for men.

The new enclosure is a Sprung Structure. In May, Layton told the council it would have translucent ceiling tiles that let in natural light, and garage doors on the sides that could be opened in spring and fall.

When it closes, and for how long

Mayor Kim Learnard asked Aug. 27 whether the project was still on track to shut the pool down in March. Layton said it was.

The council has been told to expect 10 to 12 months without the pools. At a May 7 meeting, Learnard noted that the downtime would be 10 to 12 months whenever work started. Layton said 12 months was the absolute maximum, the May 7 minutes record.

The March start was a compromise. One swim group wanted work to begin in October and another in March, council member Laura Johnson said May 21. She said City Manager Justin Strickland had told her the school superintendent preferred March because it would interrupt only one season, according to the minutes of that meeting, published in the June 4 work session packet.

Until March, Layton said, staff will cover the pools with thermal blankets every night and run the boilers. He said the experts he consulted were confident the water could stay at 80 degrees, even in freezing weather.

Where swim teams go in the meantime

Strickland confirmed May 21 that swim teams could use Glenloch pool, heated but uncovered.

In August, Layton said heating Glenloch would mean installing heaters costing about $70,000 to $80,000. He said the city would also have to make sure there was enough natural gas capacity.

The Kedron pools draw about 16,000 swimmers a year, Assistant Director Michelle Johnson told the council in August. Five high school swim teams and two swim associations use them.

What it costs

On May 7, Layton gave the council a $7.8 million cost estimate for the design, from the estimating firm Palacio Collaborative. That figure assumed construction would start in the last quarter of 2026. Each later quarter adds a 1.6% compounding increase, the minutes say.

On May 21 the council voted unanimously to approve the design concept. It also raised the design fee to $417,500 from $247,500.

Johnson said May 21 that the project would be paid for with a facilities bond and reserves. She said the city was at the most it could finance with a facilities bond.

Council member Clinton Holland argued for a 50-meter pool. Council member Michael Polacek said a study of that option put it at $15 million to $20 million, which he said was not feasible.

Also Monday: two new playgrounds

Monday’s agenda lists playground designs for Rockspray Park and Smokerise Park. Both playgrounds were total losses after trees fell on them, Layton told the council in August. Insurance paid $24,000 for Smokerise, he said, and a similar playground would cost $60,000. He said replacing Rockspray would cost about the same.

The packet holds two nature-themed designs. One is headed “Crosstown Drive” and the other “Smokerise Park.” Between them they show:

• saucer swings
• a tube slide and a spiral slide
• climbing features and an overhead ladder
• musical play panels
• benches with insect and nature cutouts

The advisory group’s Aug. 10 minutes, printed in the same packet, say the new playgrounds are aimed at children ages 2 to 5. Layton told the group insurance money would be topped up with SPLOST sales tax dollars.

Monday’s agenda also lists a playground discussion for Braelinn and a restroom design for Battery Way.

What it means for you

• Swimmers and swim families: plan for no Kedron pool from March, for up to a year.
• To see the plans: the full agenda packet, with the floor plan and both playground designs, is on the city’s meeting portal.
• To have a say: Strickland suggested in May that the city hold a community meeting at 30% design, while changes can still be made. The city had not announced one as of Monday. The Recreation Advisory Group meets at the Recreation Administration office, 10 Planterra Way.
• For the other city pools and parks, see our guides to pools and summer camps and parks and trails.

We will update this story when the city sets a date for the community meeting or puts the construction out to bid.