To the Editor:

What Amy Rios and I have proposed is a Town swimming pool on School Board property. Virtually all Pelham recreation activities are on School Board property. But questions remain.

We propose that the pool be operated by the Town Recreation Department for the benefit of Town residents and the school district’s students. The Town would coordinate use of the pool. But it would be used exclusively by the Board of Education during school hours.

The pool would be paid for by users. There would be a fee structure for families, seniors, and others on an annual basis and/or a daily basis. The pool would not appear on the School Board or Town budget. The Pelham Little League operates on a similar basis.

We propose that the pool be staffed and paid for by pool users from Memorial Day to Labor Day, whether on school days or non-school days.

The Town can organize the pool for use by seniors, the disabled, and the general population. The Board of Education can use the pool to teach all second graders to swim, a policy adopted by New York City. This could and should be accomplished by the strategic use of the traditional buddy system. All second graders and up must learn to swim by the end of the school year or receive an “incomplete” in phys-ed on their report card. The remedy (or punishment?) is summer school at the town pool.

The location of the Town pool should be central for people on foot, bicycle, or car. And there must be adequate parking. The only place that is suitable is Franklin Field. There is virtually unlimited free parking after the school bell sounds at the end of the school day.

The pool would need less than a quarter of the two-acre Franklin Field. To compensate for the loss of a small piece of Franklin Field, the Mayor of Pelham Manor has indicated a willingness to turn over the eight acres of Shore Park to the Town/Board of Education for recreation.

And someone may propose that Juneteenth be celebrated at the Town pool each year with fun and games and free swimming for all.

Michael R Treanor

622 Pelhamdale Avenue 

Editor’s note: Following the publication of this letter, Village of Pelham Manor Mayor Jennifer Monachino Lapey offered this clarification:  “While I truly appreciate Mr. Treanor’s interest in our community resources and remain open to suggestion, I did not indicate ‘a willingness to turn over the eight acres of Shore Park to the Town/Board of Education for recreation.’ This is a highly complex situation, involving legal principles and land conveyance issues, among other things.”