TECUMSEH, Mich — The Tecumseh Community Memorial Pool in Lenawee County, a longtime hub for swim teams, lessons and recreation, will be demolished after school district officials determined the building is structurally unsafe and beyond repair.
Tecumseh Public Schools closed the pool building in April to address several maintenance issues. Since then, officials say further inspections revealed significant structural problems. According to a district document, the stability of the building has deteriorated to the point that it could collapse at any time.
The decision has been difficult for families and community members who relied on the pool for decades.
“It was a place where my daughter could go, and it was her safe space,” said Kelli Feldkamp, a former swim parent. Feldkamp’s daughter, Karlee Marsh-Turner, was a standout swimmer for Tecumseh schools, and Feldkamp says the pool played a critical role in her daughter’s development.
“The friendships she made, the lessons that she learned,” Feldkamp said. “She learned how to be a teammate and a hard worker. It shaped her for adulthood.”
Feldkamp says learning the pool would be torn down was heartbreaking.
“It offers so much more than just a swim team,” she said. “Swim lessons, aerobics, lifeguarding. It’s really going to be a loss.”
Danielle Ward, former president of Friends of the Tecumseh Community Pool, says the facility served a wide range of needs beyond competitive swimming.
“It’s been a place for people to rehab, people to exercise, for health and wellness, for safety, utmost, I think, for children to learn how to swim, camaraderie, developing teams,” Ward said. “It’s been a really great program.”
Tecumseh Community Pool Director Sarah Eubanks says having a community pool is vital and hopes the district and residents will support a future replacement.
“I hope that this community realizes what a great asset it is to have a pool in this community, and I hope they are willing to put some effort into making a new pool a reality so that we can continue on the great tradition of teaching lessons and helping kids grow through swimming,” Eubanks said.
The district says demolition is expected to begin later this year and could take up to 18 months to complete. The project is expected to cost more than $2 million, with part of the funding coming from a levy approved by voters in 2024.
Superintendent officials also plan to form a committee to explore the possibility of building a new pool facility in the future.
Read more on http://www.wtol.com
