BERWICK -- Residents in Columbia County are a step closer to dipping their toes into a new resort-style community swimming pool.
The Ber Vaughn public pool in Berwick has been closed for the last three years, and while demolition started last year, today the rebuilding began.
"Today is our day one of construction we are all pretty excited about that. We've been working on this project for a few years now," said Joshua Kishbaugh with the Berwick Area Pool Association.
Kishbaugh said finally getting to this day is only possible because of almost a million dollars in donations and community volunteer efforts. Like, that from Tri-County Ace Hardware and Paint who donated about 50 gallons of paint for the pool's bathhouse.
"I know the struggles they've had to try and get that thing up and running, and we're just doing our part. We are part of the community," said Gary Hunt with Tri-County Ace Hardware and Paint.
The pool association said it originally hoped to have this pool opened by this summer, but it took them longer than they planned to agree on a design and a trustworthy contractor.
Aquatic Facility Design is the contractor they finally decided on and it promises a new swimming pool, well worth the wait.
"It's very unique, not just to this area, but to this region of the state. It features a beach entry, a children's area, an intermediate area, competition area, and a lounging area, which is actually a feature only most resorts have," said Brent Boyer with Aquatic Facility Design.
The design isn't the only unique feature planned for the new pool.
"We're going to do a bus run that will run through the west end of Berwick and the east end of Berwick and pick children up, bus them down here. They can be here all day, and at the end of the day, the bus will pick them up and take them back home," said Matt Getty with the Berwick Area Pool Association.
The pool association still needs about $400,000 to get the pool to open by next spring. They are hosting several fundraisers like a carnival at Ber Vaughn Park that starts on Wednesday.
