Over the past few months, several projects in the City of Newburgh have been active with construction personnel and vehicles at their worksites. These projects look to turn former unviable sites into active ones for the city and greater community to utilize in the future. One such project is the new aquatic center.

At the corner of Route 9W and Washington Street, the brick main entrance to the former Delano Hitch Aquatic remains intact as construction crews work behind it. The city and its residents are awaiting the completion of the new Delano-Hitch Aquatic Center. The former center has been torn down and debris from the old center has been taken off site.

The long-awaited public amenity has been closed since the first year of the COVID pandemic in 2020. As years passed and city administrations changed, the aquatic center would fall into disrepair and needed extensive remediation and upgrades in order to operate properly for public usage.

During the closure of the aquatic center, the city installed several splash pads in city parks, brought outdoor mobile water activities and opened the city hydrants to keep residents cool during the summer months. Families still used the other public water amenities to stay cool during the hotter months.

With this project, the city retained the engineering firm Clark Patterson Lee [CPL] to head up the designing and construction of the new center for the city. The proposed funding would be from American Rescue Plan Act funds and a bond. The design for the new center calls for a newly constructed six lane pool, a zero entry American with Disabilities Act access ramp with starting blocks. The design also includes a newly constructed splash pad and new welcome center with new washrooms and locker rooms, mechanical room, emergency personnel station and concession stand.

City Chief of Staff Mike Neppl said that the concrete foundations have been poured and shaped at the site as part of the construction of the new aquatic center project. The city’s electrician has recently completed the new underground power feed to the new Aquatic Facility.

The city’s general contractor recently completed the shotcrete (sprayed concrete) installation on the new pool floors and walls. The poolhouse foundation and floor slab were also completed on Friday of last week [August 23], along with all of the electrical conduit and plumbing piping that extends from the ground into the building.

The Delano Hitch Aquatic Center construction remains on schedule and is slated to open Memorial Day Weekend 2025. The city council will not need to act on any further items for the project.

“Construction of the new Delano Hitch Aquatic Center remains on schedule and on budget. We’re incredibly excited to welcome back swimming in the City, starting Memorial Day Weekend 2025,” said Neppl in a statement.