Pocatello Parks and Recreation Department making major progress on ongoing projects

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) - Major progress is being made in multiple projects for the Pocatello Parks and Recreation department.

Pocatello's Community Recreation Center is currently under a new remodel.

They are finishing up a brand new fitness center at the facility, and will close their doors from May 20 through June 3 in order to finish that part of the project.

"At the new gym, you can see from the outside that the roof and the walls are in," said Parks and Recreation Director Anne Butler. "Inside they've been doing sheetrock and tape and texture. They've painted already. So the next phase would be flooring, and they're starting in our main hallway to tear out the ceiling and the flooring there."

The rec center is expected to be finished by Sept. 5.

A new splash pad at OK Ward Park is currently in the works and is weeks away from completion. It will be Pocatello's first ever splash pad.

"They have been pouring the concrete out there and the apron with the concrete," Butler said. "So it's kind of a mess right now. But you're starting to see it really come to fruition. We're hoping that that'll be done around Memorial Day or maybe that first week of June once school gets out."

At Ross Park, the city is laying the groundwork to build their brand new water slide at the pool. They hope to open the slide before they close for the summer.

"We have the footings in for the slide," Butler said. "The crews are currently working on the footings for the chemical building that will be required as part of that slide. And then a vault, a water vault that goes on the ground underneath it. So once they get that done, the building will start to go up and then we'll start to patch back some concrete."

Each of these projects are anticipated to be completed on schedule.