ONTARIO—The Ontario Recreation District will break ground on its new aquatic center at 3:30 p.m. Friday, June 21, at Lions Park in Ontario.
In April, the project won significant funding, paving the way for the construction of the long-awaited pool.
The board in charge of spurring economic development along the Oregon-Idaho border, the Eastern Oregon Border Economic Development Board, awarded the Ontario Recreation Department a grant for more than $900,000 towards the construction of an outdoor pool in April.
In a Friday, June 14, press release from Andrew Maeda, director of the Ontario Recreation District, the groundbreaking ceremony would be at the park on Southwest Fourth Avenue.
Maeda said in April that the project could take up to nine months to complete, which means construction would be done this winter, and people could be swimming in the pool by May 2025.
Maeda said other fundraising efforts are underway for the project’s other phases, including a skatepark, gymnasium and tennis court renovation.
During the past few years, the recreation district and pool committee members have gradually chipped away at the cost with fundraisers and donations. Maeda said the project had been a grassroots effort, with countless volunteers donating time and effort.
Local voters passed a transient occupancy tax to fund long-term maintenance and operations of the aquatic center.
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