Centenary Pool Closing At The End Of High School Swim Season

HACKETTSTOWN, NJ — After decades of serving the community, Centenary University is draining the pool and closing up the aquatic center, school officials confirmed. The pool's last day in operation will be March 31, 2019.

The school cited declining pool attendance, high operating cost, and other uses for the space as the main reasons for closing the pool. It will remain open long enough to allow the local high schools that use the pool the chance to have a competitive season during the 2018-2019 school year, and other groups the chance to find new pools, the school said.

The closing prompted significant outcry from the community, with a "Keep Centenary's Pool Open" Facebook group quickly popped up, gaining 171 members over the weekend. Many members said they weren't sure where their swim teams would go.

For some high school teams, the closing of the pool leaves their futures uncertain.

"I am hoping to sit down with the athletic director when he gets back to me to discuss the future of the program. Unfortunately the school has made it pretty clear that they can not afford to pay for pool rental anywhere else," Hackettstown High School coach Fay Perticari said. "I have been contacted by some fellow coaches in our league and I think if we had the funds we may be able to come up with a few practices but not enough to be competitive."

Coaches for West Morris Central and Warren Hills Regional High schools, which also use the pool, did not immediately return Patch's request for comment.

Although the pool is home to a number of club and high school sports teams, university officials said most university students don't use the pool and want to see something else in the space. The school does not have a swim team, and the pool is not up to NCAA standards.

"The University will use the space occupied by the pool to grow its intercollegiate athletic and recreational sports programs. This is part of an ongoing initiative to add new academic programs and facilities to better meet the needs of students enrolled at Centenary University," David P. Haney, Centenary University president, said in a statement.

No final plans have been made for the future of the space, a spokesperson said.

Members of the local swim community, including parents and coaches, told Patch they had heard the pool would be closing on Aug. 31, something the school said was a consideration at one point but ultimately not the date they chose.

"There were many dates under consideration, August 31 being one of them. The University ultimately decided to keep the pool open longer.... The final [closing] date was only announced today," a spokesperson told Patch.

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