LOCAL NEWS — It’s the end of an era. Sadly, it seems that the public swimming pool at Tims Ford State Park is no more and the state wants Moore County’s feedback as to how to replace it. Tennessee State Parks will seek input from visitors of Tims Ford State Park in a meeting on Tuesday, December 14 to discuss replacement options for the swimming pool currently at the park. The pool is 45 years old, visitation has been in an overall decline, and lake swimming opportunities are available.
This confirms that the swimming pool will not reopen. The swimming pool was closed in 2020 and 2021 due to complications related to COVID-19. Reopening the pool is unfeasible due to aging facilities, declining visitation pre-COVID 19 and high expenses. Tennessee State Parks has allocated $400,000 for the park to invest in new outdoor recreation activities. State parks officials encourage Tennesseans to voice their opinions on options for alternative, year-round outdoor recreational operations at the park.
“The swimming pool at Tims Ford State Park requires major maintenance upgrades while usage continues to decline. We believe it is unfair to Tennessee taxpayers for the state to continue to invest in the swimming pool with rising costs and declining use,” Jim Bryson, deputy commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, said. “Fortunately, the Tennessee General Assembly has been very supportive of the parks in recent years, which has allowed us to allocate funding for options that are more fiscally responsible to taxpayers and that visitors can enjoy year-round. We first want to hear from visitors of the park about what they would prefer and use.”
The funds for the park will go to options that can be used throughout the year. The swimming pool, in contrast, operated only 70 days each year. The one-hour meeting on Tuesday will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the recreation hall located at 570 Tims Ford Dr., Winchester 37399. Anyone may attend. •
{The Lynchburg Times is the only independently owned newspaper in Lynchburg and also the only woman-owned newspaper in Tennessee. We cover Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}