WOODLAND HILLS : Firm Donates Heater to Aid College Pool

Efforts to keep the Pierce College swimming pool open were buoyed this week by the donation of a water heater and news that a fund raiser for the west San Fernando Valley’s premier outdoor pool may have netted twice the $5,000 goal.

The heater, needed to keep the pool open this winter, was donated by Moorpark-based manufacturer Teledyne Laars after word of the high-profile campaign to keep the pool open reached the company, said Harald Johnson, president of Friends of Pierce Pool.

The heater is worth nearly $10,000, according to the manufacturer.

The donation was sweetened by the announcement Thursday that a swim-a-thon sponsored last month by Friends of Pierce Pool has so far brought in more than $9,000 for repairs, including installation of the heater and a new sanitation system.

Johnson said another $1,000 in pledges is expected from the event, which attracted several hundred swimmers, including an Olympic gold medalist and TV celebrities.

Cathy Cameron, Pierce dean of administrative services at the Woodland Hills campus, said that although the pool still needs an expensive sanitation system, it is becoming less likely that the college will close it.

“There are still some large costs, but it’s starting to look good for the pool,” Cameron said. “The community and supporters of the pool have just been magnificent.”

College officials and members of Friends of Pierce Pool have applied for state funding for a non-chlorine sanitation system, which could cost up to $50,000.