Swimming World TV’s Brent Rutemiller sat down with Fort Lauderdale City Commissioners Steven Glassman and Ben Sorensen on Friday to talk at the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center groundbreaking ceremony.
Glassman and Sorensen were a part of the team that allowed the city of Fort Lauderdale to invest $27 million into renovating the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center that has been a destination for the world’s best aquatic athletes since the 1960s.
Glassman talked about how thrilled he is (0:37) to finally put the renovations in place and Sorensen talked about (2:13) the importance of having a newly renovated swimming pool in Fort Lauderdale.
The two City Commissioners talked about how they believe Fort Lauderdale will be a destination again (3:24) for the best swimmers and divers in the world to come and train and compete.
Sorensen also discussed why south Florida is the perfect place to have the International Swimming Hall of Fame (4:34) and why it should be the center of the swimming world.
Groundbreaking Ceremony; Photo Courtesy: International Swimming Hall of Fame
The International Swimming Hall of Fame hosted its groundbreaking ceremony for the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center $27 Million renovation project on Friday. The event was witnessed by hundreds of local media, swimmers, and south Florida citizens to celebrate the beginning of the future of the Swimming Hall of Fame Aquatic Center, Fort Lauderdale.
The renovations will include:
- Remove existing 50m competition pool and provide a new expanded fully FINA compliant standard pool with stainless bulkheads.
- Remove existing diving pool and provide new fully FINA compliant diving pool and tower including five platform levels (1m, 3m, 5m, 7m, 10m), and 1m and 3m springboards
- Remove existing spa for divers and provide new spa
- Repair existing 50m training pool with new surfacing and gutters
- Relocate and expand the instructional pool to the southwest corner of the peninsula
- Provide new filtration system, pumps, and chlorination system for all pools.
- Resurface and raise pool deck to allow for increased pool depths for competition-level use
- Remove existing grandstand building and bleachers on north side of facility and provide new grandstand with spectator restrooms, concessions, ticket office, and metal bleachers for +/ 1500 spectator capacity.
- Provide site improvements that include parking and drainage improvements, new stadium lighting, landscaping, sidewalks, and new main entry plaza.
The Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex has been in place since December 1965 when the International Swimming Hall of Fame inducted its first class. Since then, it has played host to numerous international and national level events in aquatic sports and has had ten world records fall from swimming legends Mary T. Meagher, Michael Phelps and Natalie Coughlin.
The main competition pool is currently closed and the facility will officially close April 17. The finished renovations are scheduled to finish in October 2020.
