The Center Grove Aquatic Club has been leading a largely nomadic existence over the past year and a half — first because of the arrival of a pandemic and then because the old high school pool closed down before the new one was completed.
Older swimmers in the club spent most of last year and this year using whatever nearby pools were available — Greenwood High School, the University of Indianapolis, Franklin Parks and Recreation. Many of the younger kids weren’t able to get in the water at all for lessons or practices.
But patience is indeed a virtue.
Center Grove High School recently debuted its sparkling new natatorium, one that figures to be the envy of the state’s swimming community for quite some time. It opened for CGAC practices last week and then to the public for the first time on Tuesday evening when the club hosted its annual Stars and Stripes 12-and-under meet.
“I’m excited that it’s finally here and finally open,” said Amy Spencer, CGAC’s head age group coach. “It’s been a very long process, but totally worth it.”
Though Chad Peters, a senior project manager at AECOM, notes that there are still a few minor finishing touches that haven’t yet been taken care of due to supply chain issues, high school principal Jeffry Henderson said last week that the project is at “substantial completion,” and he’s excited about the possibilities going forward.
“It’s a massive upgrade from what our previous facility was,” Henderson said, “and it provides us much greater flexibility in meeting the needs of our student athletes and obviously the swim club program as well.”
The facility was initially approved by the school board in November of 2018 with an estimated cost of $17.6 million. The price tag jumped to $23.2 million last May after the board accepted a bid package, but assistant superintendent Bill Long said last week that the total cost of the project will come in under that amount.
In the past five-plus years, Center Grove has made a $1.5 million upgrade to its football stadium, put $10 million toward a new weight room and fieldhouse and almost $800,000 toward an artificial turf surface for the soccer field. The natatorium, however, may be the new crown jewel of the campus.
One of only about a dozen Olympic size (50-meter) pools located on school grounds in Indiana, the Trojans’ new pool is 10 lanes wide, a rarity at the high school level. When it’s split for short course (25-yard) practices, it can be set up for at least 23 lanes, including three “learn to swim” lanes in the middle of the pool at a depth of four feet.
“I’m excited to have space and spread out the kids, and it’s going to allow our team to grow,” Spencer said.
“I definitely think this could help our program,” said Kiersten Smith, who is entering her senior year at Center Grove. “I know the younger kids, they would have 10-plus people to a lane, and that’s just not a good way to have to swim practice. Even for high school, we would have eight people in a lane. So I think being able to spread out, it’ll give us a lot better chance to focus on what we need to focus on.”
The additional bells and whistles included are almost too numerous to list.
An advanced ventilation system pulls excess chlorine out of the air above the surface of the water, and the balcony above, which has room for 1,150 spectators, can be climate controlled so that it won’t be as hot or humid as it is on the pool deck.
Times are displayed on a massive video board comparable to the one used at the IU Natatorium in downtown Indianapolis, the site of the high school state finals each winter. Even the record board at the northwest corner of the facility is digital, meaning that it can be updated in real time or changed to show high school, middle school or club standards, depending on who is competing at a given moment.
And the starting blocks are equipped with Daktronics RTOP (Relay Take-Off Platform) technology, which not only allows for the detection of false starts but can help coaches track swimmers’ reaction times. Longtime Center Grove varsity coach Jim Todd believes the technology will be a valuable teaching tool — “as soon as I learn how to use it.”
In addition to the main pool, the facility includes a therapy pool that greatly expands the school’s ability to work with students who have special needs.
“It’s awesome,” Todd said. “There probably isn’t anything else I could have possibly asked for.
“Basically, the sky’s the limit on programming, and I’m really looking forward to all the — not just swim club, but teaching and coaching and having other programs in there, too. I think it’s going to be a great community thing for everybody.”
The community got its first look at the new pool on Tuesday, when swimmers from nine other Indiana clubs — including Franklin Regional Swim Team, the Greenwood Gators and Indian Creek Aquatic Club — took part in the first competition at the site.
Though some technical hiccups caused a slight delay to the start of the proceedings, the 3 1/2-hour meet largely went off without a hitch, and the new facility impressed everyone who got to check it out.
“It’s pretty amazing,” Indian Creek coach Brad Smith said. “I think when you build something like that, you’ve got to do it right. Center Grove definitely did it right. The aesthetics of it, the size of it; it’ll be exactly what they need to expand the program.”
The addition of a second 50-meter pool in Johnson County also provides another local venue for hosting major competitions. Franklin, previously the lone county school with such a facility, has hosted the IHSAA boys and girls sectional meets since 2008, but it’s likely that Center Grove will at least share that responsibility going forward.
“It’s a gem, that’s for sure,” Center Grove athletic director Scott Knapp said. “When you build a facility like this, you’re expected to host big-time events, and we’re excited for that.
“I think it definitely changes the game as far as swimming in Johnson County.”
“To have two high schools that have an indoor 50-meter pool, most places around the United States, that’s a dream,” Brad Smith added. “And we’re living right in the middle of that. I don’t know that people know how lucky we are that our schools have pools, and especially now, how outstanding the facilities truly are.”
