Amid a heat wave, Mayor Brandon Scott announced construction plans Thursday for a new Coldstream Aquatic Center, bringing Northeast Baltimore residents a new way to cool down in 2025.
Baltimore City Recreation and Parks, state and city officials joined Scott for a news conference and groundbreaking Thursday morning. The announcement was part of the recreation and parks’ larger Rec Rollout program of groundbreaking and ribbon-cutting celebrations for upcoming projects.
When talking to people close to his age from the city, they all share how the department was important in keeping them safe and active and their overall development, Scott said in an interview.
“Growing up, we saw mayor administration after mayor administration disinvest in Rec and Parks, and my commitment to the city is that they will see the opposite from me,” Scott said.
The Coldstream Aquatic Center is the third of six pools the city will be renovating as it continues the broader effort to replace aging pools with state-of-the-art facilities. Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act made the $7.5 million renovation project possible.
Construction of a state-of-the-art pool in the Coldstream Homestead Montebello neighborhood is “even more special,” Scott said in the interview, as the neighborhood where he spent time as a community organizer and liaison is “near and dear” to him.
The Coldstream pool has been shut down for three years, which was needed so it could be redesigned, Reginald Moore, executive director of recreation and parks, said. The new design will include a lap pool, a zero-entry wading pool, a beach entrance, a pool house, an aquatics office, a mechanical room and restrooms. The center is scheduled to open next year.
Coldstream Homestead Montebello, also known as CHUM, will now have two pools in the area, the other being in Clifton Park, which City Councilwoman Odette Ramos said she’s excited about.
“I know this is a long time coming and a lot of the things that are happening in our neighborhood, it’s a long time coming. And it’s happening,” Ramos said. “So I want to thank you all for your patience but also I am so glad we’re here to deliver.”
While Scott emphasized his commitment to Recreation and Parks, City Council President Nick Mosby said Scott’s actions also symbolize his administration’s commitment to helping young people in the city.
“That is what this is about, pouring into our young folks and letting them know that we are there for them and we’re there more importantly not for where they are but where they’re going,” Mosby said. “And that’s their future.”
