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Park Board ponders pool season changes for next year
With school starting earlier and earlier every year and lifeguards disappearing at a faster rate accordingly, the Greencastle Aquatic Center is annually caught in a scheduling bind.
This year the calendar had barely rolled over to August before the city pool season was over, and that is a cause for concern among Greencastle Park Board members and park employees.
“How many calls did you get about the pool closing?” Park Board President Cathy Merrell asked interim Park Superintendent Jason Keeney.
“About 50,” Keeney responded to the Aug. 2 end of the season.
The earlier closing has moved away from the traditional schedule that once saw the pool open Memorial Day weekend and close on Labor Day.
“I think that’s way too early,” Park Board member Doug Hutchison commented on early August closing.
Traditionally attendance drops off at fair week and rarely recovers much due to last-minute vacations before the start of school and other activities.
Keeney noted that even on days in late July when the temperatures soared into the mid 90s, attendance was down.
“We had like five people in the pool when it was 95 degrees out,” he said. “They were all hiding in the air conditioning.”
Once school starts, the aquatic center finds it difficult to schedule lifeguards, most of whom are teenagers and often athletes whose fall sports has already gotten under way.
“If we could get five or six adult lifeguards, we could extend the season,” Park Recreation Director Ashley Crady suggested.
Merrell reminded the others that it has been tried before without much success.
“People grumble,” she said, “but attendance has been very, very low. You can never win the battle. You can’t appease everybody.”
It was suggested that perhaps by staying open on weekends only, the pool could try operating until Labor Day again.
“We’ve had major discussions about pool things for next year,” added Keeney, who has been taking a pool operator’s school class and also will be doing his Red Cross certifications.
Included in those discussions, he said, is the possibility of keeping the pool open later each day instead of closing at 7 p.m.
That would “take some finagling with the schedule” to work around the allowable hours for teenage help, but Keeney called it “very doable.”
Merrell seemed to embrace the idea, “especially since it stays light out so much longer.” It is often still light out to almost 10 p.m. in early July.
No changes involving the pool were voted on by the Park Board Wednesday night.
“It’s months away,” Keeney said. “Give me a few months. We’ll figure it out.”
The splash park availability was also questioned. It has been closed for some repairs and is now awaiting approval of a new water sample sent to the State Board of Health. The OK could come by the weekend.
The splash park, with its free admission, is traditionally open until early October or until cooler temperatures prevail. It is operated without any lifeguard presence.
Chemicals and concession supplies for the pool were also discussed during the approval of $26,608 in monthly Park Department claims for July. The last batch of pool chemicals totaled $10,827 through Spear Corp. and concession items were listed as $4,073 from Gold Medal, Indianapolis.
The pool chemical costs were “pretty normal,” Keeney reported, noting that there will be some left to facilitate the pool opening next season “without having to buy as much next spring.”
“We’ll also have a new filtering system next year,” he said, indicating that will reduce the amount and number of chemicals needed. “I’ve seen the filtration system,” Keeney added. “It’s remarkable and half the size of what we have.”
Meanwhile, Crady explained that leftover concessions include a case of pretzels and a “little bit of ice cream,” along with Gatorade and other drinks that will be sold at the concession stand during fall softball.
She indicated city officials are unsure whether they will use Gold Medal as the park concession supplier again.
The board also agreed to a change order to extend the new sidewalk past the park office to Bloomington Street at the west entrance to Robe-Ann Park.
That will be part of the overall reconstruction Phase II being undertaken by Feutz Contractors, Paris, Ill.
Keeney was asked when that project finally would be done. Its delay was the reason the Fourth of July celebration was moved out to Big Walnut Sports Park this year.
“They told us hopefully two weeks,” he advised.
“That’s almost two months late,” Merrell reasoned. “I think everybody’s ready for it to be done.”
Mayor Lynda Dunbar has previously noted that Feutz is currently paying liquidated damages of $500 a day after missing the July 1 completion date.
Keeney indicated he has a punch list to go over with the contractor.
Striping work and laying sod are among the tasks that still need to be done.
The speed bumps have been installed and people can drive through part of the area, while cars have been parked there during recent Parkfest events.
“It looks so beautiful now,” Keeney said.
Board President Merrell was joined by members Hutchison and Scott Hamilton with Tim Trigg absent. They were joined by Keeney, Crady and City Council park liaison Stacie Langdon.
The next regular session of the Park Board is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 4 at the park office in Robe-Ann Park (or City Hall if everything is up and running to livestream and record city meetings.