By Laura Kostin
A Building Committee for the Greenwich High School Natatorium, Access Driveway
and Tennis project (The NAT) is fully assembled.
Seven volunteers were appointed by the Board of Selectmen and all have been approved by the Representative Town Meeting (RTM).
Kaan Aslansan and Steven Siler’s appointments were combined with others before the RTM Monday night and received overwhelming support from the body, with a vote of 181 In Favor, 2 Opposed, 2 Abstained.
Five other members were handily approved by the RTM last month:
Jeffrey Aser (169 In Favor, 5 Opposed, 9 Abstained)
Paul Constantin (171 In Favor, 3 Opposed, 6 Abstained)
Diane Chiappetta Fox (169 In Favor, 4 Opposed, 7 Abstained)
Dan Raffe (165 In Favor, 3 Opposed, 6 Abstained)
Jacqueline Nicole Sanderson (166 In Favor, 4 Opposed, 9 Abstained)
All seven appointments were referred to RTM’s Appointments, Education and Public Works Committees.
None of the newly voted members served on the project’s Feasibility Committee. Now that the Building Committee is fully staffed, it can hold its first organizational meeting, elect officers and develop a meeting schedule.
The current GHS pool has been plagued by leaks and emergency access issues, though safety clearances for divers and code-compliant drains and infrastructure have also been areas of concern.
Presentation materials, TLB Architecture, March 20, 2025. The GHS swimming pool was initially constructed in 1968 and had a major renovation in 1997. Main Drains covers were replaced in 2008, following the enactment of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act. No other major upgrades or renovations have been done since.
According to the projects Education Specifications, “Providing secondary vehicular access from Route 1 has been a longstanding community goal and has been discussed for at least a decade.”
Specs for the project were developed by AECOM and Antinozzi Associates as well as other consultants for the Feasibility Committee. They were approved by the Board of Education in June.
In addition to the GHS Physical Education curriculum, which includes aquatics and lifeguarding classes for students, the pool is utilized by the girls and boys swimming and diving teams as well as the boys and girls water polo teams. The tennis courts, which are nearing the end of their useful life, are utilized by the boys and girls varsity and junior varsity tennis team.
Clearance over the diving board is reduced by means of a steel girder, steel beams, sprinkler piping and ductwork. Circled in the photo is a water bottle placed on the flange of the girder by a diver. Also visible in the photo are names that were written on the beam (obscured so as to not identify students). The TLBA report said this could only have been accomplished by hanging from the beam long enough to write the name.
See also:
Aquatics Community Rails Against Possible 1-2 Year GHS Pool Closure
March 2025