The Tamaqua Borough Council held a grand opening and ribbon cutting for the new water slide at the H.D. Buehler Memorial Pool on Monday.

The water slide measures approximately 12 feet high and 60 feet in length and cost $95,000. The project was funded by a $60,000 grant from the John E. Morgan Foundation and $35,000 from the borough's Community Development Block Grant Program.The slide was manufactured by Avalanche Waterslides Inc. of Carthage, Mo., and installed by Sports & Recreation Associates LLC of Apollo, Pa. Wade Associates Inc. of Harrisburg served as project designer and consultant. The borough's street and water departments constructed the concrete deck, sidewalks, retaining wall, storm drainage, plumbing and electric.Due to cold and rainy weather, the pool was closed Saturday and Sunday and was opened on Memorial Day. The pool will be open daily beginning on Saturday, June 1, at 11:30 a.m. Hours of operation will vary depending on attendance, weather conditions and other unforeseen circumstances."I want to thank the Morgan Foundation for their generous donation toward the project and the rest of council for their willingness to commit CDBG money toward it as well," said David Mace, chairman of the Recreation and Youth Committee.Mace also expressed his appreciation to Tamaqua Borough manager Kevin Steigerwalt and Housing and Rehabilitation officer Dan Schroeder for their efforts in managing all the details incumbent in this type of project. Thanks also went to Wade Associates for their design of the slide and to the borough workforce for their assistance in the electrical and plumbing systems, as well as the concrete bases.Applications for season pool passes are available at the Tamaqua Municipal Building, 320 E. Broad St. For more information, contact the borough during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or call (570) 668-3444 or (570) 668-0300."I think this is just another example of many people in the borough working together to complete a project that the residents of Tamaqua will enjoy for years to come," added Mace.