Update on the Astoria Park diving pool theater plans

Image source: Queens Courier

The Queens Courier reports on what was presented during the meeting with the community and the Parks Department on the evening of February 20 at Astoria World Manor. Looks like they will start the ground-breaking process in about 18 months, and the cost for the project will be $4.7 million, which is more than was originally projected ($1 million). The theater will likely have a 500 person capacity; if they add more exits, they believe they could accommodate 2,500 persons.

The plan is the fill in the pool with concrete, which currently serves as a catch for leaves and other detritus (urban rumors say that some kid dove in one day and hit his head and died, and they closed the pool), and they’ll repurpose the dive tower, build a new entrance for the amphitheater, along with two additional exits. They’ll also move the small diving boards that surround the diving pool. A wheelchair accessible path from the parking lot to the theater will be created. And there will be concessions.

Here are more details about the design:

The circumference of the pool itself will be covered in a stone pattern to evoke the illusion of water, in an ode to the dive tank that will be removed, according to Nora Meehan, an architect for the Parks Department. Also to keep the look of the dive pool, the design will keep the tower, but remove the bottom ladder to prevent people from climbing up it.

One of the criticisms we’ve heard recently is that the construction and costs don’t accommodate bathrooms for the performance space; apparently plumbing costs are rather spendy. Bringing in portable bathrooms is the suggested solution. There is also concern about traffic, the use of generators (cost and noise), and how affordable performances will be. Overall, though, the idea of a performance space in place of the diving pool has been met very positively by local residents.

City Councilman Peter Vallone (D-Astoria) has been big on turning the pool into a performance space. He says, “We’ve been looking forward to this for a long time. Hopefully, if I’m borough president next year, I’ll be able to put in more money to make it even better — and even more magical.”

Astoria dives into entertainment [Queens Chronicle]