The Pool That No One Can Swim In: Cognetti’s October Ribbon-Cutting

When Mayor Paige Cognetti cut the ribbon on a new activity pool at Nay Aug Park on October 23rd, cameras rolled and city officials smiled. But behind the celebration was an odd reality: after years without a functioning public pool, Scranton’s long-awaited replacement will now be drained and winterized without a soul ever dipping a toe in.

The pool, which took nearly three years to build, will sit idle until next summer. After years of delay, the city’s first swim-ready facility was opened to the public just in time for cold weather. Many residents are asking why the mayor chose to hold a grand opening for a pool no one can use.

The new activity pool, funded by roughly $3 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act money and a $1 million state grant, is the first of three planned features for the Nay Aug Park pool complex. The next phase includes a lap pool and a splash pad. Those features have not yet been funded.

The pool replaces the former shallow pool and slides that served generations of Scranton residents. In 2022, Cognetti ordered the slides torn down, citing the manufacturer’s closure and the city’s inability to properly maintain them. That decision was made unilaterally, even though the pool facilities fall under the jurisdiction of the Scranton Municipal Recreation Authority. At the time, current Council President Gerald Smurl sat on that authority board.

The pool demolition and replacement process began in 2022, after years of closures and neglect. The adult lap pool leaked so severely that it was shut down in 2018. The shallow pool, which remained open briefly in 2019, had its liner fail midway through the season and was later filled in. The slides were dismantled that fall, and the space sat empty for years.

The city’s announcement of a “Master Plan” for the site was followed by long delays and limited public updates. Residents who grew up swimming at Nay Aug watched demolition crews erase what had once been a landmark. When the October ribbon-cutting finally arrived, many expressed frustration that the mayor would celebrate a pool that will not open until 2026.

The decision to hold a ribbon-cutting in October has drawn quiet criticism from residents who see it as symbolic of a wider problem. The project took years, cost millions, and ended with a public relations event for a facility that immediately had to be winterized.

For families who have gone half a decade without a public pool, the celebration feels premature. After three years of construction, Nay Aug’s new pool stands full—for now—but unused, another reminder that Scranton’s residents are still waiting to dive back in.