After a one-month delay, the refurbished and redesigned Ed Newland Pool is finally ready to welcome swimmers, and it couldn't come at a better time.
According to United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, this July has been the hottest month ever recorded.
Final inspections of the Preston facility and the official handover of the site from the city's contractor were completed earlier today, meaning the pool will be open with what the City of Cambridge is calling a "soft launch" starting on July 29.
Swimming lessons will resume at the upgraded pool Monday followed by a grand opening for the pool and ribbon cutting ceremony Aug. 12. More details will follow closer to the date.
"With the hot weather upon us, it was important to provide residents with a cool place to enjoy for the remainder of the summer," the city said in a press release.
Although the pool is ready for swimmers, work will continue on the interior of the building now and beyond the pool shutdown after the Labour Day weekend.
Originally set to open with other city pools on June 17, contracted delays and supply shortage setbacks pushed the opening until late July.
After experiencing its busiest year in 2021, city council voted to shut Eddie's Pool down for the 2023 season until repairs could be completed.
Renovations to the 90-year-old pool included replacing the pool liners, building a new deck area and updating the circulation system.
The $1.2 million upgrade also addresses accessibility concerns and makes it more efficient to operate.
Eddie's Pool will become the only outdoor pool in the city after the 73-year-old George Hancock Pool is closed and decommissioned at the end of the 2024 season.
The Kinsmen Soper Park Pool closed in 2021, but in February council asked staff to make accommodations in its plans to build a splash pad and park on that site for potential construction of a new outdoor pool as early as 2025.
