CHINOOK — In 2019, a group of Chinook volunteers faced a difficult reality: the community pool that generations had grown up with was deteriorating, and saving it would require years of work and millions of dollars. This week, that effort paid off.
The Chinook Community Pool officially reopened Tuesday following a nearly $2.9 million fundraising campaign led by the Friends of the Chinook Pool and Park Foundation. The project modernized the aging facility and gave new life to one of the Hi-Line community's most treasured gathering places.
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"It was incredible," foundation president Heather DePriest said. "We have worked so hard collectively as a group to get to this point. It's fun to see all the kids in the pool. It made every bit of the effort worth it."
Aging pools present growing challenge across Montana
Chinook's success comes as many Montana communities face difficult decisions about the future of their public pools.
Kaden Bedwell, an engineer with Interstate Engineering who specializes in pool projects, said many of the state's pools were built during the 1960s and 1970s. Now, they're reaching the end of their expected lifespan at roughly the same time.
"A lot of these smaller rural communities, their pools were built in the 1960s, early '70s," Bedwell said. "So they're hitting that 50- to 60-year-old range, and things are just kind of starting to fall apart."
As those facilities age, communities are dealing with cracked concrete, failing plumbing, leaking pool shells and outdated filtration systems. Repairs often cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, while constructing a new pool can run from several million dollars to well over $10 million.
Several Montana communities are already facing those challenges. Community pools in Columbus and Livingston are closed this summer while officials work toward long-term solutions. Other communities, including Big Sandy, Fort Benton, Circle, Malta and Ekalaka, are evaluating major rehabilitation projects or replacement plans.
Rather than waiting for conditions to worsen, Chinook chose to invest in a major renovation. The project replaced aging infrastructure, modernized the facility and added features like a zero-depth entry for young swimmers, helping extend the life of the pool for years to come.
More than a pool
For first-year pool manager Isaiah Gillett, the reopening is personal.
"I've pretty much lived at this pool all summer since I was four or five years old," Gillett said. "It was just the thing to do if you were a kid in Chinook."
For generations of Chinook families, the pool has served as more than a place to cool off. It's where children learn to swim, friendships are built and the community gathers throughout the summer.
The foundation's work isn't over. Organizers plan to continue fundraising to renovate the surrounding park and eventually update the pool house.
For now, though, volunteers are taking time to celebrate.
