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NOVA of Virginia Aquatics plans to partner with Henrico County and the owners of Regency Mall, Thalhimer Realty Partners and The Rebkee Company, to develop an indoor Aquatics Center in the vacated Macy’s South building. The mall will be repurposed to a thriving community center, supporting water safety and healthy lifestyle iniatives. Construction is expected to start in September 2019, project duration is eighteen month. Henrico officials announced plans during a work session of Henrico’s Board of Supervisors on March 26. The indoor facility will feature the Sharp Family Pool, an eight lane 50-meter pool, and two six lane 25-yard warm water pools. In addition, there will be spectator seating, locker rooms, a swim shop, and other amenities. The first floor footprint is 50,000 square feet, with the opportunity to add additional rooms and spaces around part of the first floor perimeter.
The Regency investment will provide significant communuty access to aquatics. 7,000 community hours will be available per year, amounting to over 250,000 visits per year. The warm water pools will be available for fitness training and swim lessons; NOVA will partner with the Henrico County school system and the YMCA to provide swim lessons at no cost to school-aged children as part of the regional initiative to teach all second graders to swim.
The cost of the project is estimated to be about $18 million, including a mix of private and public funding. Henrico County will contribute $1.75 million over five years. In addition to a cash contribution, Regency will provide the building shell and will modify it to support the pools and related infrastucture. NOVA will construct and pay for the pools and cover the facility’s annual operating costs. NOVA will enter into a twenty year lease arrangement with Regency, with the option to renew for an additional ten years. Project planning is underway and will conclude in July/August. Assuming construction costs are within line, and all legal documents are signed, groundbreaking should commence in September 2019.
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