City Council Monday approved a contract with a consultant to conduct a feasibility study and develop preliminary alternative designs for an aquatic complex at Prospect Pool.

Aquatic Facility Design of Millersburg, Dauphin County, is charging a total of $25,900 for the work, which will take the potential upgrade of the old pool facility further than a pair of previous studies several years ago that Public Works Director Nate Kissell called “initial steps.”

If all goes smoothly, Aquatic could complete the work in time for the city at the end of the summer to commission a full design, potentially in time for construction work on a new complex to begin in the spring of 2026, according to Kissell.

Aquatic’s work will include collaboration with a focus group; “key person interviews” to help determine programming and infrastructure needs; a public needs survey; documentation of existing facilities to help in creation of a site usage plan; development of as many as five concepts for a new complex, which could incorporate existing components — or not; a listing of programs that would be possible with each concept; images of all proposed features; estimated lifeguard and patron counts that would align with each concept; budgetary projections for each concept; and question-and-answer sessions with a study committee.

The consultant’s work would also include core borings to determine the condition of the pool “shell,” which would in turn help determine the nature of proposed upgrades.

Kissell declined to estimate the potential cost of construction for the various alternatives, other than to say that they would reflect different cost levels.

At times in recent years, the pool seemed at risk of being closed by the Central Blair Recreation and Park Commission, which operated it, because of low attendance, aging components that are costly to repair and replace and persistent behavior problems with teen patrons.

The city took over management in 2023 and ran the pool successfully that summer and last year, after investing in modest upgrades and bolstering security.

Officials have stressed that it is important to keep and upgrade the pool as an asset for the benefit of young people living in a poorer section of the city.

Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.