Another Summer Without Tuhey

With the official news that Tuhey Pool in Muncie, Ind. will be closed for the summer of 2010, local swimmers are wondering where they will be able to take a dip when summer rolls around. All sources say that Tuhey pool will be closed indefinately due to cost of repairs and compliance with the Virginia Graeme Barker Pool and Spa Safety act. Like many other pools, Tuhey will need to be refitted with special "unblockable" drain covers to insure that drain entrapment is impossible.

To help fill the communities need for a safe pool to swim in, the Downtown Muncie YMCA will be beefing up its aquatics program. According to head lifeguard Jarod Walls, the YMCA will make an effort to stay involved in the community. Walls asserted that the YMCA has ran Tuhey pool for the past nine years for the city of Muncie. The YMCA does not own Tuhey pool, but supplies traind staff and general upkeep of the facility. In the summer of 2009, the first summer that Tuhey pool was closed, the YMCA opened its doors to several childcare groups that had depended on Tuhey pool to provide a safe and supervised environment. The YMCA plans to continue this program.

Other plans at the YMCA for the summer of 2010 are already underway. According to head swim instructor Megan Taylor, the YMCA will do its best to provide many activities that were once held at Tuhey pool at the downtown pool. These programs will be expanded to allow for the surge of participants that the summer will bring.

With many pools across the nation closing due to noncompliance with the safety act, the people of Muncie Ind. seem to be pleased to still have a place to swim.