AMHERST — A preliminary vision for breathing new life into the 2-acre area around the War Memorial Pool shows a new bathhouse building anchoring the site, along with play areas, a spray park, walking paths and a memorial area.

While Kuth Ranieri Architects of Franklin and The Berkshire Design Group of Northampton are exploring how to activate the site between Triangle and Mattoon streets — where the refurbished swimming pool is the most prominent feature and a dilapidated basketball court and playground are next to it — initial reaction from residents questioned the overall cost of overhauling the recreation area.

At a May 6 meeting, Assistant Department of Public Works Superintendent Amy Rusiecki said the project is in the neighborhood of $4 million for just the bathhouse construction, with $750,000 in Community Preservation Act money to be matched with another $1 to $1.5 million in state or federal grants.

The priority, Rusiecki said, has been to rebuild the 1953 bathhouse, with users possibly losing access to the swimming pool if the building continues to deteriorate. The new bathhouse would be open both for swimmers during the summer months and would provide bathrooms accessible to the public during the rest of the year.

Liz Ranieri, managing principal at Kuth Ranieri, said the current plan is to build the bathhouse over the current basketball court, allowing the existing building to remain functional while the new building goes up. A splash pad would then go on the existing building site.

Other aspects of the project include an amphitheater built into the side of the hill that separates the site from the high school playing fields, and a commemoration space, play structures, climbing apparatuses, and fitness and obstacle equipment.

Michael Liu, lead designer for Berkshire Design, said the site design concept has many features. “It’s blending of elements that we feel would work and offers a new and exciting design for the site,” Liui said.

“Right now, there’s not much that’s attracting people to stay and use the site for any specific purpose,” Liu said. “Obviously developing it in such a way, where we’re giving all age groups in town a chance to come to this central location and find something, is appealing and attractive for them to do.”

Some of the public feedback questioned whether there should be a skate park or a basketball court with lights, to focus the area more on what might appeal to teenagers.

South Amherst resident Maria Kopicki asked if there is a less expensive plan. “Is there a low price version of meeting minimum needs that was developed?” Kopicki asked.

Similar comments came from North Amherst resident Toni Cunningham, who noted that the town and schools don’t have enough money to reorient the high school track and field during a rebuilding project.

Matt Cain, who serves on the Recreation Commission, said there may be too many distinct areas in the pool site plans. “I do think coming up with a beautiful design, something that’s appealing and attracts people to the space, is a very valuable thing to do,” Cain said. But he noted there is a chronic lack of basketball courts in town, even as new playgrounds have been opened at Kendrick Park and Groff Park.

Rusiecki said the new bathhouse building wouldn’t just be open for two months, but nearly year-round, and a community room inside it could be used for programming or birthday parties.

The concept is definitely scalable, Ranieri said, so that parts of the bathhouse could be removed. Kuth Ranieri has worked on other projects in Massachusetts, including the bathhouse for a new swimming pool that opened in Buckland last summer.

“With this building investment, we were thinking how to optimize its use for as many months out of the year,” Ranieri said.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.