Pool at Wana B Park to be demolished
Splash pad, arcade discussed as potential replacements
The swimming pool at Wana B Park in Cumberland Township will be demolished and replaced by new amenities after officials determined it would not be economically feasible to repair and operate the pool in its current form.
Subsidence and unstable geological conditions caused a series of leaks that could not be repaired at the pool, which has been closed since 2023, the county and township said in a press release.
“Every day they would empty the pool, the next day the pool would have six feet of water,” said James Sokol, chairman of the Cumberland Township Board of Supervisors.
And fewer people were coming to the pool in its final years, when it was drawing about 20 people a day, the release said.
The announcement leaves Greene County Water Park in Waynesburg and Mon View Pool in Greensboro as the two remaining pools in the county.
Under the joint agreement, the swimming pool would be torn down, while the bathhouse would remain. Greene County would contribute up to $100,000 toward the cost of demolition, and would then release the property back to Cumberland Township for future development.
The county and township reached an agreement in 1977 to construct the pool, which the county agreed to operate and maintain for the next 99 years.
Greene County Board Chairman Jared Edgreen called tearing down the pool “one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.”
Edgreen said the county’s been evaluating the future of the pool since 2023. A study by K2 Engineering conducted in 2024 put the potential repair costs well upwards of $1 million, based on plumbing and the visible condition of the pool, where the sides were bowed in.
“We looked at potential grants and other sources of funding, but found that grants do not favor public pools, and the county would have to cover the majority of the cost itself,” Edgreen said.
Other county commissioners and the directors of the county’s parks and recreation department also agreed even if the county could somehow reopen the pool, the maintenance and upkeep costs would continue rising over the years.
“We did some due diligence on this, and it took some time and research to deliberate, but ultimately we couldn’t justify the cost — and truly didn’t have the budget — to put this massive cost on the backs of the taxpayer,” Edgreen said.
There’s not a clear timeline yet for the reclamation of the pool space, but the county is happy to work with the township “to ensure there is a new amenity that is cost-effective, safe, and to strengthen the asset that is Wana B Park,” Edgreen said.
Greene County wrote a Local Share Account grant a few years ago for Cumberland Township to improve stormwater drainage, bathroom upgrades and trails of the park, said Greene County Board Vice Chair Betsy McClure.
“We will continue to focus on fiscal responsibility while enhancing and preserving recreation at Wana B Park in conjunction with Cumberland Township supervisors,” she said.
Sokol said whatever the township adds to replace the pool will join the amenities it’s already working on, including a baseball field, basketball courts and pickleball courts.
“We’ve been doing a lot of work now at that park, and I think people notice that,” he said.
Discussions on what will replace the pool have included a splash pad and arcade.
Sokol said it’s still uncertain when the township will determine that for sure.
“The county commissioners are turning the property back over to us, so we’ll take it from there,” he said. “We’re not definite what’s going to go in there yet, but there will be something.”