Asheville council approves extra design funds for Malvern Hills pool after residents urge in-kind rebuild

Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer and the City Council voted to approve additional design funding for the Malvern Hills pool rebuild after multiple residents urged the city to repair or rebuild the pool within its existing footprint.

Residents pressed council during the public-comment portion of the meeting to “fix it” and to restore the pool “in its current footprint,” citing the neighborhood’s long expectation that the pool would be rebuilt like-for-like. Sally Grau, a resident who spoke at the meeting, told council the community “never asked Parks and Rec to redesign the pool” and asked council to “allow us as a community to use our tax dollars to rebuild the pool we campaigned for so that it can serve all the families of Asheville for another 90 years.”

The council first approved the consent agenda without item M and then took a separate vote on item M, which covers increased budget authority for the Malvern Hills pool project. After public comment and discussion by council members acknowledging the pool’s history and neighborhood expectations, the council voted to approve item M. The meeting record does not specify the dollar amount approved in item M; public speakers asked only that the city commit to design changes that honor the pool’s historic footprint and minimize changes beyond code-required updates.

City staff and council members said the additional design funds will allow Parks and Recreation to revisit designs, price options that retain the pool’s approximately 75-by-150-foot footprint, and address accessibility and code compliance. At the meeting a council member said the city will use the funds to “look at some different designs that price those out and deal with some of the ADA compliance requirements and then we'll see where that lands.”

Residents who testified, including Shannon Aiken, emphasized that the neighborhood prefers a straightforward rehabilitation rather than an extensive redesign, which they said has added time and perceived cost. Council members noted the history of the project and acknowledged the community’s expectations that the pool be returned to service; they also said more design work is intended to evaluate options that limit complexity and cost while meeting codes.

No specific construction timeline or final design was presented at the meeting. The record shows council approval of the funding step but does not record a detailed implementation schedule, exact dollar amounts, or a construction start date. Council and staff said further design work and community meetings will follow to refine options.

For now, the city has authorized staff to proceed with the additional design work. The public record does not specify whether any follow-up reports or deadlines were assigned for a next decision point on final design selection or construction contract award.