In the summer of 2011, a group of residents from Forest Heights met at Hendershot’s. The topic of discussion was reopening the old neighborhood pool located between Hampton Park drive and Forest Heights Drive. The culminating idea was that we could reopen a wonderful resource for our neighborhood. We would have a forum to meet our neighbors and a place for our children to meet lifelong friends. This group decided that reviving the pool appeared to be feasible, so they moved forward with getting estimates from pool companies. Winter chill, and higher than expected construction estimates turned momentum into molasses. The idea wasn’t gone, but the enthusiasm was waning.

By the spring of 2012, there was another group that met down at Hendershot’s to again discuss reopening the pool. This group was comprised of both Forest Heights and Hampton Park residents. At this meeting, it was agreed that we needed to evaluate the participation level that we could expect from these neighborhoods. A survey was distributed to every house in the neighborhoods. The survey results showed that there was a very healthy interest in reopening the pool, however there weren’t enough people able to contribute to the upfront cost of construction. The reopening of the pool was in jeopardy.

Bob Shields, owner of Birchmore/Shields Pool and Spa felt that this was a venture worth investing in- especially because he wanted his grandchildren to have a neighborhood pool at which they would make lifelong friendships and memories. He purchased the property in August 2012, and began reconstruction in October.