Trish Bennett, Editor
CIRCLEVILLE – Residents have just a few more days to enjoy the Circleville city pool as the YMCA winds down the operation for the season.
Sunday is the last day of swimming at the pool in Ted Lewis Park for the summer. The day will end with the traditional Doggie Dive before the gates close for 2015.
“The Doggie Dive is back by popular demand,” said Jeff Phillips, executive director of the Pickaway County Family YMCA. “We did not do that last year, but a lot of people really enjoyed it. We checked with the city, they were OK with it, so we’ll wrap it up Sunday with the dog swim.”
Residents are invited to bring their dogs to the city pool from 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday after the pool closes for a bit of summer fun. Dogs must have a current license and proof of rabies vaccination and must be clean and not fed at least two hours prior to the event. Aggressive dogs will not be permitted in the pool, and owners must pick up after their dogs. The cost is $5 per dog.
Despite extended periods of rain this summer, Phillips said the pool was busy most of the season.
“The days we were open, we had very nice crowds all summer, and people really seemed to appreciate it,” Phillips said. “There were a few days we offered extended hours, and we had quite a few private parties there.”
The YMCA also offered one day of free admission, which drew more than 250 people to the pool that day.
“Overall, it was very positive,” he said. “You obviously have to deal with the weather and other things. One day the pool pump went down, and we were wondering if we would even be able to open back up this year. Fortunately, the city was able to get it up and running again in a day. They worked hard and got it back open.”
Phillips said the end of the pool season coincides with the start of school and college classes for the majority of its lifeguards.
“Because of those schedules, we have to look at staffing issues,” he said. “School seems to start earlier every year, but last year we closed Aug. 10, so we’re a little bit beyond that this year.”
Phillips said it will be up to the city, which owns the facility at Ted Lewis Park, if the pool will open again next summer.
“If they do reopen it and want us to run it, I’m sure we would do it again,” Phillips said. “And if they decide not to for some reason, I have said all along the Y, in lieu, would consider making our indoor pool available to the public.”
City council has not yet discussed whether the pool will reopen in 2016.
While operation of the city pool is not a money-making venture for the YMCA, Phillips said he is pleased if it can just break even.
“For years, the Y lost money doing it,” he said. “We’ll have to wait until the end of the swim year to evaluate everything, but as long as we’re breaking even, I’m fine with that. It’s something we want to do for the community.”
The Savings Bank was the biggest supporter of the pool this year, Phillips said, providing a large donation to assist with the cost of operation.
“With the revenue from the pool and the funds we had to help us, I’ll think we’ll be pretty close to the mark,” he said.
The city pool is open now through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. daily, and admission is free for YMCA members.
For non-members, the price of admission is $2 for children ages 3 to 8; $4 for youth ages 9 to 17; $6 for adults ages 18 to 59; and $2 for seniors ages 60 and older. Family admission for two adults and children ages 17 and under is $20 for the day.
Anyone with questions about the city pool or the Doggie Dive may contact the Pickaway County Family YMCA at 740-477-1661.
This article originally appeared on The Pickaway News Journal
