SAGINAW, Mich. — The Sherwood Pool will reopen after nearly three years of closure, following $1.9 million in state funding that allowed Saginaw Township Community Schools to complete extensive structural and mechanical repairs. District leaders and community members marked the occasion with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday, Dec. 1.
The pool, housed at Sherwood Elementary School, shut down in February 2022 after structural deterioration and failure of an aging dehumidification system made continued use unsafe. Replacement parts for the system were no longer available, and the lack of humidity control risked causing further damage to the building’s walls and roof.
For more than 35 years, the Sherwood Pool has served as a community fixture, offering daytime aquatic exercise for older adults, evening boot camp classes, children’s swim lessons and lifeguard training. It is the region’s only warm-water pool at 86 degrees, a feature that provides therapeutic benefits and easier access for older adults and other participants. Hundreds of residents use the pool annually, and officials said its closure created a major gap in local recreation and safety training.
After months of assessments with architects, planners and construction teams, the district determined that fully repairing the facility — including restoring structural integrity and replacing the humidity-control system — would cost about $1.9 million. Because the pool is not used for student instruction during the school day, Saginaw Township Community Schools could not use general instructional funds to cover the repairs. Attempts to raise private donations fell short due to the size of the request.
Michigan State Rep. Amos O’Neal visited the site after repeated applications for state support. Following his review of the project and its community impact, he supported securing the needed appropriation, enabling the district to move forward with repairs.
With construction now complete, the pool will resume operating five days a week, from morning through evening, offering its full slate of programs.
Aquatic classes and lifeguard training schedules will be announced soon. Updates will be posted at stcs.org/page/comed.
