The Acalanes Union High School District board decided in January to move ahead with the restoration of the swimming pool at Miramonte High School by breaking the project down into two separate parts. Previously the board had considered restoring the swimming pool as well as the locker room, but owing to rising prices, they chose to move ahead with the swimming pool part of the project only for now, leaving the locker room for later action.

    The contract for the pool plaster and lights was awarded to Waterworks Industries, Inc. Waterworks was the lowest bidder for the project at $2,522,473. Three additional bids were received, but all were higher.

    At the January meeting of the board, Superintendent John Nickerson said that with the award of the contract, work of the pool will take place during the summer of 2026. The district will plan to renovate the locker room in a separate project in the future. While the locker room remains functional, the disrepair of the pool was critical.

    Nickerson noted that just that morning he had received a report concerning a portion of the cantilever deck.  Apparently, a good size chunk of the deck had fallen into the pool. “We are working to patch it together,” he reported, so that hopefully it will last through one more swim season. Nickerson also said that there was enough cash flow to afford the project through Fund 35 and Fund 21.

    AUHSD, which includes six school properties in Orinda, Moraga, Lafayette and Walnut Creek, has six pools, four of which were out of service over the winter break, according to Nickerson. “Keeping our pools up and operational is a challenge and making sure that we can have them open is a priority,” he concluded. 

    The locker room project is mostly about making it accessible to individuals with disabilities by fixing the existing ramp. That project is also estimated to require about $2 million to complete.

    In other AHUSD news, the district held its annual board reorganization on Dec. 17, 2025.  Wendy Reicher was elected Board President for the 2026 calendar year. Nancy Kendzierski was elected to serve as Board Clerk, Superintendent John Nickerson was elected to serve as Secretary to the Governing Board for the 2026 calendar year, in accordance with the terms of his employment contract.