Greene County OKs lease termination for Wana B Park pool
The Greene County Board of Commissioners approved an addendum to the lease agreement with Cumberland Township regarding the early termination of the lease and demolition of the pool at Wana B Park.
The county and Cumberland Township announced the decision earlier this month to get rid of the pool, which had been closed since 2023 due to geological issues and subsidence that caused a succession of leaks.
In the 1977 lease agreement, the county had agreed to take on operations and maintenance of the pool for the next 99 years.
“We’ve discussed this 100 times, working with the township and people,” said Commissioner Blair Zimmerman. “This was not taken lightly. We’re one of the few, if any, counties around that have multiple pools, and even our good pools lose money.”
The closure leaves the county with two pools: the Greene County Water Park in Waynesburg and the Mon View Pool in Greensboro.
The addendum approved by commissioners Thursday authorizes Cumberland Township to manage the project and contracting. It also stipulates that Greene County will contribute up to $100,000 of the cost, which would be delivered in annual reimbursements of $25,000 starting next year.
Terminating the lease gives about five acres of land back to Cumberland Township, said Commissioner Betsy McClure.
“They’ve told us they’d like to do a splash pad there and an arcade, which is still a water feature, so it’s nice,” board Chairman Jared Edgreen said.
During public comment of Wednesday’s meeting, the board also took a question from Center for Coalfield Justice organizer Christina Blasinsky about discussions regarding the former Robena Mine site. The proposed Project Hummingbird would use 1,400 acres for a complex that would house two natural gas turbines totaling 910 megawatts that would power a hyperscale data center on the site.
Commissioners said discussions with the Monongahela Township board, U.S. Sens. Dave McCormick and John Fetterman, and U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler had not been about the data center, but of environmental mitigation for the brownfield site.
Edgreen said they were seeking federal funding for cleanup of the site, which has been leaching into the Monongahela.
“It is a true brownfield and hazard to the community,” McClure said. “Not only in the air, but when it rains, that coal refuse is leaching into the Mon … it could be very harmful.”
Commissioner Blair Zimmerman said there had been no word from International Electric Power about any movement on Project Hummingbird, describing the status of communications as “crickets.”
At Wednesday’s meeting, the board also concurred with the county Conservation District’s approval of more than $256,000 in contracts through Greene County’s Reinvestment in Agriculture: Cost-share Enhancement (GRACE) Program. Funded through the GCCD in part with proceeds from Act 13 impact fees, the program is designed to improve soil health and water quality.
The largest portion, $109,150, will go toward forestry projects. The program will also fund watering systems, interior pasture division or streambank fencing, fertilizer and lime for 681 acres.
“Many counties in the state do not have a program such as this with this cost share,” Edgreen said. “We’ve been highlighted at the state level for this work, so we’re excited that more and more people every year are jumping onto this program and really increasing the practices and being environmentally friendly with their land and farms.”