News/Press/Events/Presentations

Swim Winchester Blog

09 Oct 2014
News Permalink

Tax exempt status!

October 9, 2014

10/9/2014

We are very pleased to announce that we’ve received confirmation from the IRS that Swim Winchester is a 501(c)(3) public charity. This means that all donations to Swim Winchester are tax deductible retroactive to our incorporation date in February 2013.

Our generous current donors — listed here — will receive a letter from us stating the contribution amount for their records.

If you have not yet donated, now is a great time to consider a gift! We are currently asking for small donations ($20 to $500) to help us work with our architect and town officials to identify the most appropriate site for the facility. You can donate securely by credit card through our website www.swimwinchester.org or send a check to Swim Winchester, P.O. Box 44, Winchester MA 01890.

We would also like to acknowledge Ms. Carol Tedesco of Tedesco Law Offices who donated her time for a reduced fee to submit the IRS application. Her expertise was very much appreciated.

05 Sep 2014
News Permalink

Feasibility study says “yes” to a Winchester pool

September 5, 2014

9/5/2014

In spring 2013, Swim Winchester hired St. Louis-based Counsilman-Hunsaker, a leading aquatics consulting firm from St. Louis, to evaluate the pool initiative. Here are some highlights of the feasibility study:

Winchester can support a self-sustaining aquatics facility
The “ideal” facility would have an 8 lane competition pool and a warmer recreational pool, plus a fitness space and event room
An optional add-on outdoor pool would bring in additional revenue and meet strong summer recreational demand
The facility would have user fees (memberships and day passes) and would not need to rely on subsidies from the town of Winchester
The total cost to build is estimated at $11-13 million, with the outdoor add-on approximately $2 million

A link to the full study is available on our website home page: www.swimwinchester.org If you would prefer to receive a copy by mail please let us know. As always, we rely on your feedback, observations, and questions to shape this project. We are an all-volunteer, grassroots initiative so your participation is important. Together we can build a beautiful fitness facility as a lasting legacy for Winchester!

Our next step is to work on a site selection study to find the best location for the pool. Donations towards this work are gratefully accepted here: Donations We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of the wonderful donors that made the feasibility study possible. Your support is recognized here.

Thank you,

The Swim Winchester Board of Directors

24 Mar 2014
Event Permalink

Feasibility Study Presentation on April 2, 2014

March 24, 2014

3/24/2014

What: Swim Winchester Celebration
Where: Sanborn House, 15 High Street, Winchester
When: Wednesday, April 2, 7:30 to 9:30 pm
RSVP required: winchesterswims@gmail.com

Swim Winchester is pleased to invite its supporters to an event to celebrate the successful completion of its feasibility study on a swimming facility for Winchester. Our donor-funded study found that an aquatics facility would be a well-used community asset that could generate enough revenue to operate without a town subsidy.

Kevin Post, partner at the highly respected national aquatic facility design company Counsilman-Hunsaker (St. Louis) will speak about the feasibility study and answer questions. We are also pleased to welcome Karen Bush, Director of Concord MA’s Beede Center, who will speak about that town’s successful private-public aquatics facility partnership.

Come see the first concept drawings for a proposed Winchester community pool and fitness facility and give us input on the project.

Thanks to a generous donation by EnKa Society, this meeting will be held at the beautiful Sanborn House. Light snacks and beverages will be provided. RSVP is required due to limited space: winchesterswims@gmail.com

01 Mar 2014
News Permalink

Site Alternatives Study DONE!

March 1, 2014

3/1/2015

The Swim Winchester site study found that Skillings Field is the best site out of 15 possible locations in Winchester that were evaluated based on a list of criteria. Thank you to everyone who gave ideas and input.

The Skillings Field location came out on top with advantages that include:

its proximity to the high school and athletics fields
minimized need for new parking because spaces would be shared with the high school (evenings and weekends)
it is centrally located near town center businesses and the Jenks center
the site can be accessed via a non-residential road

For more details, please see the full study: Site Study You can also request an electronic or paper copy via our Contact Us page.

As some of you may know, the Board of Selectmen are currently discussing an override to pay for major work on Skillings Field (a new culvert, environmental remediation, and turf play field). There will be a public hearing on these plans at 7pm on Monday, March 16th in the Maurer Auditorium in the Winchester Town Hall.

We are very hopeful that the pool initiative can be part of the new vision for Skillings field. How wonderful if the field could be modernized and transformed into a high quality athletic destination serving both the town and the high school.

A huge thank you again to everyone who helped fund this important study.

23 Jan 2014
Letters to the Editor Permalink

Swim Winchester thanks early supporters

January 23, 2014

Letter to the Editor, Winchester Star
http://winchester.wickedlocal.com/article/20140127/NEWS/140126903

Swim Winchester thanks early supporters

At the high school renovation community meetings held last year, many members of the public said how wonderful it would be to finally build the swimming pool that was supposed to be part of the original 1970s Winchester High School. It turned out that the state funding agency (MSBA) wouldn’t allow this as part of the cost-shared high school rebuild, but that didn’t stop a group of residents from imagining the possibilities. We envisioned a swimming facility that would serve not only the high school but the whole community and decided to sponsor a feasibility study to see if a public pool would make sense for our town. Over 120 Winchester individuals and families donated to the effort and we were able to reach our fundraising goal of $20,000 in just six months! On behalf of the board of directors of our newly formed non-profit, I want to express our heartfelt thanks for the outpouring of support. We’re excited that we will be able to share the results of this study within a few months. Hopefully this will be the first step toward a great new recreational asset for our town.

Catherine Curtis, president, Swim Winchester

10 Dec 2013
Press Permalink

Visit to Concord Beede Center

December 10, 2013

Winchester Star, 01/23/14
Town Notes
http://winchester.wickedlocal.com/article/20140125/NEWS/140127292

A group of residents working to bring a community pool to Winchester is looking to a facility in Concord as a model.

Members of Swim Winchester visited Beede Swim and Fitness Center in Concord last month for inspiration. The 35,000 square-foot complex combines state-of-the-art equipment – including a 25-yard lap pool, a deep water diving pool, a warm water therapy pool and children’s play pool – with the atmosphere of a community meeting place, according to Joe Reid, a member of Swim Winchester’s board of directors.
Swim Winchester members are working with Beede managers to understand of its public-private partnership model and how that could be applied in Winchester.

Swim Winchester raised $20,000 from donations and a grant from the En Ka Society last year to do a feasibility study. It commissioned Counsilman–Hunsaker, an aquatics consulting and design firm, for the study. It will hold a public meeting in late February or early March to review the results and gather feedback from residents.

22 Nov 2013
News Permalink

WE DID IT! Phase 1 Fundraising Goal reached

November 22, 2013
We’re absolutely thrilled to let you know that we’ve met our fundraising goal for the first phase of the Winchester swimming pool initiative!  Thanks to donations  from so many fellow community members ranging from $10 to over $1000 in just six months together we’ve raised over $20,000.  

A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS!!Now that we’ve met this goal, we’re planning to complete the feasibility study in the next couple of months and share it for comments in the new year.   Please continue to spread the word with friends and neighbors about the pool.  We are also still gratefully accepting donations to help us cover credit card fees and kick off our next phase.

03 Oct 2013
Press Permalink

Study on pool for Winchester nears completion

October 3, 2013

Swim Winchester, a group of local residents working to bring a year-round community pool to Winchester, is nearing a fundraising goal, the group announced last month.

Swim Winchester, a group of local residents working to bring a year-round community pool to Winchester, is nearing a fundraising goal, the group announced last month.

Four months after launching its bid to collect money for a pool feasibility study, the group is $2,000 shy of its $20,000 phase 1 fundraising goal, according to the group.

Phase 1 will culminate in a third-party study, which will identify a facility to meet Winchester’s needs. In June, the group hired Counsilman-Hunsaker, a consulting firm with experience designing aquatics facilities.

So far, Counsilman-Hunsaker’s analysis shows there is a strong need for more pool space in Winchester, according to Swim Winchester. Cost estimates for proposed facilities are $10 million to $15 million.