Since the city closed it in 2020, the Budlong Pool has occupied a murky and contentious place in Cranston, its fate uncertain and residents questioning the city’s plans for it.

Now, as the new year begins, the community pool may be approaching a fresh start, too.

Following the completion of an environmental review required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to access the $750,000 grant, approval to release those funds was sent over last week, according to the mayor’s chief of staff, Anthony Moretti.

In terms of getting shovels in the ground and bringing the pool back into use, Moretti says the goal is to open July 1, 2025 – though the target date may change as work proceeds.

As the project moves forward, some continue to object to the demolition and downsizing of the pool.

A community group, Cranston Forward, has been resolute in keeping up to date with developments involving the Budlong Pool. Founded by Cranston resident Karen Rosenberg, the organization has made clear its rejection of the mayor’s plan for the pool.

During environmental review, Cranston Forward joined the project as a consulting party.

Susan Blake, a member of Cranston Forward, has lived in Cranston for over 30 years. She knows the pool well and described it as a place not just for people to learn how to swim, but also to develop a sense of community.

“I mean, that pool was a gift to us by the WPA, and Hopkins didn't do one single thing to make that pool open since the day he took office four years ago,” Blake said.

Blake said her objections to Hopkins’ pool plan include the greatly reduced size of the new pool and the cost of such a project, money she says could have been used to repair the pool in its current configuration.

The new pool will be about 8,000 square feet with a deep end of about 6½ feet. The current pool covers 22,000 square feet with a deep end of about 9½ feet.

“As far as I'm concerned, this is a huge waste of money on a project that doesn't need to be done,” Blake said. “They have the money to do all the repairs that need to be done to it now and they're not doing it. They're insisting on destroying it – a landmark, destroying that – and putting in this tiny pool at $4.75 million.”

Moretti said that replacing the pool at its current size or repairing it would have cost more than was allocated to the project.

According to a report by Saccoccio & Associates, an architectural firm, and Weston & Sampson, an engineering consulting firm, the cost to repair the pool would be $5 million and offer a 10-year lifespan. Moretti said the cost to replace the pool at its current size would be $10 million and offer a 40-year lifespan.

The new Budlong Pool will be fully funded by $4 million in American Rescue Plan Act money that the City Council approved, plus $750,000 in federal grant money, and is planned to have a lifespan of more than 40 years.

“The mayor was restricted with certain funds, so he had to build the biggest pool possible with what the City Council gave them,” Moretti said.

And because of its eligibility as a state historical landmark, Moretti said, the pool house will be fully preserved with exception to the renovations needed inside to modernize and safeguard against environmental contaminants.

One of the biggest criticisms the administration has gotten throughout this process is the lack of public involvement in the planning of the project.

But Moretti said there have been more than 20 public meetings – and said he was pleased Blake and Rosenberg had participated in nearly all of them.

“I guess when you have over 25 public forums, how many more do you need?” Moretti said. “And there was so much redundancy. So, I don't think it could have been anything more said or anything, any further opportunities given publicly and privately.”

The Budlong Pool was first built in the 1930s, during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, by the Works Projects Administration (WPA) to combat the rise of unemployment and despondency among Americans during The Great Depression. It provided relief from dismal economic conditions and a community space for people to come together and make memories.

It is one of the largest public swimming pools in the nation, nearly twice as large as an Olympic-size pool.

With the project moving ahead, Blake said there is nothing the group can do to prevent it from happening.

“My goal is just to keep people informed, mostly through social media, about what is going on with it,” Blake said. “I'm ready to keep fighting. But at this point, I don't see anything happening unless it's an act of God.”