BURLINGTON COUNTY COMMUNITY CENTER VISION and MISSION of the SAVE THE POOL CONSORTIUM

Contact info: carole.melman@gmail.com

Mission: The mission of the Save the Pool Consortium is to permanently save the pool and athletic building, athletic fields, courts, and canoe launch at the RCBC Pemberton Campus, in an effort to continue bringing affordable, quality aquatic programs and indoor and outdoor recreation experiences to all Burlington County residents.

Vision: The vision of the Save the Pool Consortium is to maintain a self-funded, deep-water competition pool for cradle-to-grave personal and community water safety and recreation as the centerpiece of a new Burlington County Community Center. Ultimately, the campus would become an operationally self-sustaining, community-centered facility, expanding the number of users of the gymnasium, weight room, and classrooms, and providing high-quality aquatic experiences to a diverse range of users including but not limited to infants, toddlers, young children, high school swim teams, senior citizens, veterans, differently-abled, first responders, those needing a location for safety training and Red Cross certifications. The pool would be the focal point of an active recreation facility encompassing the Rancocas Creek, the ball fields and courts, and the athletic building that would encourage development and ratables to come to the area in the only county park east of Route 206.

Immediate Strategic Goal: To persuade the RCBC Trustees and the Freeholders of the value of expanding the county park system east of Route 206 by incorporating the most utilized athletic complex in the county.

Strategic goals:

● Become part of the Burlington County Parks System. This would be the only County park east of route 206.

● Become operationally self-funding by offering a variety of affordable, high-quality aquatic programs, with subsidization of the high schools’ utilization of the pool, especially the swim meets.

● Expand access to the gymnasium, weight room, fitness classes, and outdoor fields and courts.

● Bring in more users through extended, focused marketing strategies.

● Work with Burlington County to showcase the new Burlington County Community Center as a positive draw to encourage regional development.

● Garner support for the pool from local businesses, schools, etc. (How would developing the pool into a community recreation center help them in their businesses, etc.)

The Pemberton pool is not simply a facility, a line-item on a budget sheet. It represents the best of a community. The Save the Pool Consortium seeks to expand this sense of community to all the people of Burlington County by becoming the centerpiece of the only County Park east of Route 206, while supporting affordable, quality recreation programs and facilities for the area’s large, diverse and less-affluent population.