Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot [D] arrived at the Edward T. Hall Aquatic Center in Prince Frederick in time to greet some local swimmers on their way out.
“Hello, I send out tax refunds,” said a smiling Franchot, who was visiting the facility, which was built with help of state funding. Franchot’s brief visit took place Monday, March 26.
Maryland’s money, totaling nearly $3 million, came from Program Open Space. The total cost for the indoor swimming pool, which opened in June 2010, was nearly $20 million.
Calvert County Government officials estimate that over 135,000 people have utilized the indoor facility during the first eight months of the current fiscal year.
Commissioners’ President Gerald W. “Jerry” Clark [R] told Franchot the indoor aquatic center is “one of the biggest non-road projects in Calvert County history.”
Clark and Commissioner Susan Shaw [R] were part of the county’s welcoming committee when Maryland’s top fiduciary official visited. Both Clark and Shaw were commissioners when the pool project was being debated, designed, built and subsequently opened.
“We have a facility that serves all segments of our population—young children, our students, seniors, serious athletes and recreational swimming,” Clark stated. “Our high school swim teams have a home facility to host swim meets complete with a mezzanine seating level for spectators.”
Prior to the opening of the Edward T. Aquatic Center, the county’s scholastic swimmers had to be bused to facilities in neighboring jurisdictions in order to practice and compete.
Calvert Division of Parks and Recreation Aquatic Supervisor Kenny Gray explained the indoor pool has been used for the Red Cross Lifeguard Training program, water aerobics classes, cardio pulmonary resuscitation training courses and therapeutic and rehabilitation programs. Personnel from the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office have also used the pool for training.
Division of Parks and Recreation Chief Doug Meadows told Franchot that during the summer of 2011 the facility did not see a drastic dip in attendance despite the operations of
