After the Platteville Family Aquatic Center experienced a catastrophic failure in 2024, city leaders and residents came together to determine the future of one of the community’s most valued amenities. The result was a shared vision for a modern aquatic center designed to serve families, swimmers, and visitors for decades to come. 

JEO was selected in early 2025 to lead design efforts for the new facility. For Project Manager Andrew Pennekamp, the project carried a unique significance. Having grown up in Platteville, he spent countless hours at the community pool as a child before building a career designing aquatic facilities across the Midwest. 

That hometown connection brought an added level of responsibility to the work. 

“I knew that if we got it right, the community would embrace the facility for decades,” Pennekamp said. 

At JEO, many projects are rooted in the communities where our employees live, work, and raise their families. Platteville Family Aquatic Center is a powerful example of the value that local expertise brings to a project. Pennekamp’s local perspective helped provide valuable insight into how residents used the facility and what they hoped to see in its replacement. 

Following an extensive planning and community engagement process, the design focused on more than replacing what was lost. The team reconfigured the site to create more usable green space, incorporated permanent spectator seating into the hillside, and positioned a three-story waterslide as a signature attraction. Design elements were also coordinated with the adjacent inclusive playground to create a cohesive recreational destination. 

The vision was clear: create a modern, long-lasting aquatic center that could support recreation, exercise, competition, and relaxation in one place. 

Community support quickly followed. Residents approved the project through referendum, local fundraising efforts generated more than $1 million, and volunteers contributed countless hours to help move the project forward. 

“That level of support speaks volumes about how important a new aquatic center was to Platteville and reinforced our responsibility to deliver a worthy facility,” Pennekamp said. 

With an aggressive schedule, JEO implemented a phased bidding approach that allowed demolition and excavation to begin while final design work continued. The strategy helped keep the approximately $7 million project on track and enabled the facility to open as planned in June 2026.

Today, the Platteville Family Aquatic Center is once again a gathering place for the community. Families, friends, and neighbors are creating new memories in a facility designed for future generations. 

For Pennekamp, opening day was a rewarding reminder of why community-centered projects matter. 

“Seeing hundreds of people walking through the gates and embracing the facility was incredibly rewarding,” he said. 

The completed aquatic center stands as more than a replacement for a beloved community asset. It demonstrates what can happen when a community rallies around a vision.