Mason, Ohio’s Parks and Recreation Program officially opened the town’s new aquatic center this week. The Mason Municipal Aquatic Center (MMAC) has been in development since 2019 with the original project projected to cost approximately $20 million dollars.
The facility is home to the Mason Manta Rays, a USA Swimming Gold Medal Club for the last four years. The team has sent athletes to Olympic Trials every year since 2008 including 13 last year. It’s the home club of many successful NCAA swimmers, including Adam Chaney and brothers Jake and Carson Foster.
Highlighting the new complex is the year-round indoor 50-meter competition pool. The pool can either be a ten-lane long course pool or a twenty-lane short course one. This flexibility allows the Manta Rays to expand, and creates opportunities for Masters swimming, water polo, and triathlon training. There is also a “splash” pool and a heated leisure pool in the facility.
A Matter of 50 Meters, a booster group helping to the gap between the project’s cost and available public funds, fundraised to contribute to the project. The campaign sees the new pool as a step towards “reaching the goal of seeing a Mason Manta Ray on the U.S Olympic Team.” They posted updates throughout construction, including this one from October 2021.
The new venue features an Omega timing system, a full video scoreboard, and spectator seating for up to 1,000.
Sweet Pool!