Westminster Municipal Pool Gets a Facelift

The Westminster Municipal Pool will offer more than just swimming this summer and the fun will be accessible to children with disabilities.

Last spring Ron Shroers, director of Westminster Department of Parks and Recreation, secured a $140,000 grant from the State of Maryland Project Open Space Fund. 

"About five years ago the Council and Department of Parks and Rec made a commitment to make all the parks in Westminster ADA accessible," Shroers said. "We have to make sure that we are getting people from the parking lot to the equipment."

A new state of the art playground replaced an old wooden playground, all of the woodchip surface has been replaced with a rubberized surface, a new merry-go-round has been installed, there is a new basketball net and a covered kids playplace has been built in the baby pool area. Additionally, a state-of-the-art game that gets kids up and moving has been installed. Shroers said it may be the only one installed in a public playground in the state right now. 

Shroers was able to secure the grant, find contractors, use a community panel to select the contractor for the job and get the new playgrounds built, in just under a year.

"The reason I've gotten a lot of grant money  over the years is because we don't sit on the money. We get projects done so residents can utilize the resources," Shroers said. 

Shroers said that the city of Westminster has made about 85 percent of its parks ADA accessible to date. And he noted that all of the upgrades have been done using grant money. 

In addition to making the pool area ADA accessible, Shroers said that he also wanted to decrease dirt and mud areas around the pool and increase the amount of activities available to pool users.

"You have to have elected officials who want quality of life for the residents, and that's what we've had as long as I've been here," Shroers said. 

Membership to the Municipal Pool costs $200 for a family membership and
$128 for an individual membership if you live in Westminster. County residents can purchase a membership at a cost of $260 for a family and $146 for an individual. 

Visit the Westminster Department of Parks and Recreation website for more information.