This fall, The Mary Wayte Pool underwent big changes, including the flooring, new paint and a new electronic board. These new additions are intended to benefit not just MIHS and the school district, but the Mercer Island community as a whole. The much-needed updates to the pool provide new resources to many high school students who participate in MIHS sports, club swim members and community members who utilize this community space for recreational aquatic activities.
Mary Wayte received many updates throughout the end of the summer and the beginning of the fall. Some of these updates include a new electronic board, refinished pool interiors, new paint and locker room changes. The new electronic board can be used to inform people of updates on the pool and even act as a bulletin board for important information and events on the island, as well as advisories on pool policies and rules. For MIHS swim teams, this board means having an easy way to know times and heats for certain events while swimming. In addition to the new electronic board, the locker room received a much-needed update, too. Replacing lockers, updating and adding a new bathroom stall, and giving the locker rooms a well-overdue makeover.
Additionally, the new improvements to the pool give Mary Wayte a refurbished and vibrant look that invites community members to access and enjoy this public space. These new improvements benefit so many members who use these public spaces for athletic opportunities.
Community members from the school district include the MIHS girls swim team who practice in the fall, the boys swim team who practice in the winter and the girls water polo team in the spring season.
“There hasn’t been any significant investments in the user experience since [Mary Wayte Pool] was built,” Capital Projects Manager for MISD Brandy Fox said. It has been almost 50 years since the last big visible renovation of Mary Wayte and when improvements have been made, they were small ones that did not impact the day-to-day life of the community members who use the pool.
“Every time we close the pool and work on it, everybody comes in and doesn’t see that we did anything. [In the past] we put in a new mechanical system, a new boiler and things that nobody ever sees… I’m just glad that it’s something people can really see and appreciate,” Fox said.
On a personal level, the new additions to Mary Wayte impact me as a swimmer and water polo player. I am a sophomore on the MIHS girls swim and water polo teams and I have already witnessed the benefits of these radical new improvements. As a swimmer, the new board helps to get splits for certain events and final times for races much more easily than having to ask timers or coaches to do it manually every time.
It takes a lot of stress off the timers and coaches and allows for them to focus on the swims instead of just the final times. I love being able to see my times on the board and immediately know how I did, it’s much more beneficial for seeing where I need to improve and where I did well.
Overall, the new improvements to the Mary Wayte pool greatly benefit all members of the Mercer Island community, including students at the high school, recreational swimmers and any other people who choose to utilize the space.
The additions of new locker rooms, re-done flooring inside the pools and the electronic board will help to make Mary Wayte Pool a community space that can be enjoyed by all.
