Crockett council authorizes application for state park grant to pursue $1.5 million pool project

Crockett city leaders voted to let staff apply for a Texas Parks and Wildlife local park grant to fund a proposed $1.5 million community swimming pool, a project that would require the city to provide a 50% match, city staff told the council.

City staff recapped earlier work on the pool, saying preliminary engineering and initial local allocations totaled $750,000 but that bids after pandemic delays came back substantially higher. “The magic number to make the swimming pool, you know, to be able to build that swimming pool was about $700,000,” staff said, and later reported that a bid returned near $1.4 million, driving the request to pursue grant funding to reach the larger project scope.

Staff told council the grant program opened May 1 and has a two-month application window. The staff presentation noted the city already has engineering, surveys and preliminary plans in place, and said local partners — including area churches and the Boys & Girls Club — had indicated willingness to help with operations once the pool opens, potentially reducing staffing burdens.

Council members debated whether to hold out for a larger pool that would better meet community needs versus constructing a smaller facility. A council member moved to approve the resolution authorizing staff to pursue the Texas Parks and Wildlife grant and to certify the city’s eligibility and local match; the motion was seconded and passed.

What happens next: staff will prepare and submit the preliminary application and supporting documents for the local park grant. The resolution gives staff authority to certify that the applicant (the city) can provide the required local match; the grant review and scoring will determine whether Crockett receives the award.