Area residents hoping to beat the heat this week had one less swimming option available to them when the Ulster County Pool in New Paltz was closed indefinitely. But county officials are hopeful that “indefinitely” will only last until sometime this weekend.
On Sunday, June 23, it was discovered that there was a significant loss of water from the 700,000-gallon Olympic-size pool overnight. While staff was able to maintain a safe operating level of water for swimming on Sunday through Tuesday, the pool was closed on Wednesday when that was no longer the case.
In an interview with Hudson Valley One on Wednesday, Assistant Deputy County Executive Amberly Jane Campbell said the Department of Public Works believes the issue is related to a check/relief valve built into the bottom of the pool.
“They think that’s because of the high water table in the area,” Campbell said.
On Thursday, June 27, a scuba diver from an outside vendor will investigate the check/relief valve, and if that is determined to be the issue, a repair or replacement could have the pool open again by this weekend.
“If that’s not the issue, then the scuba diver is just going to explore other parts of the pool and search for the leak,” said Campbell.
She added that she understood that even with some relief from the recent heatwave on the horizon, the pool’s closure might have disappointed local swimmers.
“I know if I wanted to swim, I would be upset,” Campbell said. “Hopefully by the weekend, everything will be back to normal.”
When functional, the Ulster County Pool on Libertyville Road in New Paltz is open seven days a week from mid-June through early-September, 11 a.m. until 7 p.m.
For more information about the Ulster County Pool, visit: https://ulstercountyny.gov/public-works/ulster-county-pool-complex.
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