Mayor Ed Gainey agrees to reopen pool on North Side
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey agreed to reopen a neighborhood pool after some people said it would never happen.
"I'm excited for the youth, I'm excited for the children," Chief Ikhana-Hal-Makina of Pittsburgh said. "I'm excited for the community. It's important for this pool to open."
The Sue Murray Pool on Pittsburgh's North Side will reopen next Wednesday, the city said Tuesday. It comes after the community collected signatures and called on Gainey and leaders to reopen it.
"It's the kids and families who benefit from the usage of the pool," Pittsburgh resident Dion DuPree said on Tuesday. "It's hot. It's 90 degrees today and we are not even through June. It's a beautiful thing to know kids will be able to get in the pool and have a good time."
The mayor, his staff, Pittsburgh police, other city leaders and concerned citizens gathered at a special meeting Tuesday about the pool.
"It wasn't pressure, but it was a conversation," Gainey said. "It was the ability to understand the importance of Sue Murray to the North Side and understand the dynamics of what makes it important."
The city reportedly cited lifeguard staffing shortages and reports of crime, including drug issues and fights, for not opening the pool this year. Gainey said his team is working through how to address the safety concerns.
"Strengthen up security around the pool to make sure our children are safe," Gainey said. "Two is to ensure that inside the park that we are eliminating a lot of the criminal activity that you see. And thirdly is to work with the community to ensure their voice is heard and helping us solve this problem."
Gainey also promised to keep fighting crime in all areas of the city.
"We got to find a way to get the guns out of 15-year-olds' hands. That's number one. We have to do that. So, this is a work in progress, and we are going to work until we get it right," Gainey said.
The city offered two plans for how to reopen the pool. Either splitting the week with Riverview or half-day splits.
The city also plans on reassigning lifeguards from others pools and hiring more.