Staff report

Mehlville officials hope to have the school district’s shuttered community pool at Mehlville Senior High School repaired and reopened by March, according to Superintendent Terry Noble.

In addition, the district has projected the “worst-case scenario” cost to repair the facility to be roughly $247,000, he said.

“We don’t have that broken down yet,” Noble said shortly before the winter break. “We haven’t gotten an itemized list of what each repair will cost or a timeline yet. We’re hopeful it would be ready by spring sports.”

The pool, built in 1973 at Mehlville Senior High School, closed in November after engineers found it was in need of major repairs and district officials determined they couldn’t guarantee patrons’ safety.

A July inspection uncovered a number of issues, including roof and deck-support problems, plus structural problems with the observation window used by the high school swim teams. High humidity levels and pool chemicals over the years contributed to those problems, officials said.

Noble said part of the repair costs may be covered by district insurance. He said the administration believes it’s a feasible endeavor.

“It definitely makes it worth repairing,” he said of the preliminary cost projection. “We wanted assurances that any repairs we did and the resources we poured into it would be worth it in terms of longevity, as well as just making sure it’s a safe environment.”