By Alice Phillips

Construction of a new upper school pool is expected to begin in a matter of months, J.D. De Matté, Director of Campus Operations and Construction, said. The new pool, projected to cost $5.5 million, will be 25 meters wide by 51.9 meters long, leaving room for a movable bulkhead so that the pool can either function as one 50-meter pool or two 25-meter pools.

The project, slated for completion by the 2012-2013 school year, will take approximately one year to complete once construction can begin at the Zanuck Swim Stadium site, De Matté said. A seed $2.5 million donation has been secured for the project with an additional $1 million raised. The remaining $2 million needed to match the projected $5.5 million estimate must be raised before construction can commence.

The length of the new pool will be parallel to Coldwater Canyon, extending further south toward the main driveway and further north toward the track than the current pool does. The southernmost end of the pool will abut a new retaining wall just north of the right-hand-turn lane of the driveway, which will eliminate several Taper parking places.

Despite the site’s proximity to the Upper School’s main entrance and exit, De Matté said that traffic flow will be minimally affected because most construction vehicles will access the site from the track via the North Gate rather than from the South Gate.

The swimming and water polo teams will practice at Los Angeles Valley College’s facilities during construction.

“We have a good relationship with Valley College,” De Matte said. “They used our pool when they were building their pool, they used our track when they were building their track.”