Charles City pool opens for the season, with reduced days and hours for now

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

The Lions Field Swimming Pool opened for the 2023 season under perfect weather conditions on Memorial Day Monday.

It was planned to be closed today (Tuesday), however, as a reduced schedule is in effect for at least the start of the season.

The Charles City Parks and Recreation Department had announced about a week ago that the pool will be open fewer days and fewer hours until additional lifeguards can be hired.

The schedule currently is to be open from 1 to 5:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and closed on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Parks and recreation Director Tyler Mitchell explained that the pool requires a certain number of certified lifeguards to be on duty to be open, and currently there aren’t enough to fill all the shifts for all the hours and days that the pool has traditionally been open.

He said that some people are in the process of becoming certified, and the city will also help pay for people to become certified to work at the Charles City pool. Persons have to be at least 15 years old to become a certified lifeguard.

Hopefully the number of lifeguards can be increased and the time the pool is open can be increased, Mitchell said.