Dear Hilltop Neighbors – we received this notice from Denver Parks & Recreation and wish to share it and encourage you to also share with your teenagers, neighbors and others in your social network who may be interested in summertime work to help alleviate this problem.
Dear DPR Customer,
With less than half of the necessary lifeguards to operate all 30 available pools at full capacity, we have made the decision to close six indoor pools beginning June 5 so that outdoor pool operations can be prioritized. To allow for two additional lifeguard certification courses to be held, the opening of the outdoor pool season will be pushed back to June 13, 2022.
The six indoor pools to temporarily close were selected based on a variety of factors including equity, usage, proximity to other pools, and scheduled closures:
• Ashland
Nearest DPR Pools: Rude (Indoor), Aztlan and Berkeley (Outdoor)
• Central Park
Nearest DPR Pools: Hiawatha Davis Jr., Martin Luther King Jr., Montbello (Indoor) and Swansea (Outdoor)
• Scheitler
Nearest DPR Pools: Berkeley pool outside of the recreation center and Aztlan (Outdoor)
• Twentieth Street
Nearest DPR Pools: Glenarm (Indoor) and Globeville/Argo Park and Mestizo Curtis Park (Outdoor)
• Washington Park
Nearest DPR Pools: Carla Madison (Indoor) Harvard Gulch, Harvey Park, Ruby Hill (Outdoor)
• Montclair (Scheduled pool closure due to maintenance)
Nearest DPR Pools: Martin Luther King Jr. (Indoor) and Cook Park (Outdoor)
Many of the indoor pools that remain open are located in traditionally under-resourced areas of the city. Indoor pools that will remain open are Athmar, Carla Madison, Glenarm, Hiawatha Davis Jr. , La Familia, Martin Luther King Jr., Montbello and Rude. At this time, we are assessing how programmed activities scheduled at the site closures, such as swim lessons, will be impacted. It may be that some programs are relocated to other pools or possibly canceled. We will reach out directly to affected customers.
Denver is facing similar challenges in recruiting lifeguards as are many municipalities and businesses across the country, including many in the metro Denver area. For several years, Denver Parks and Recreation has paid the full cost of certification or renewal for job applicants and will continue to recruit aggressively using numerous methods. DPR staff has been working with local school and community organizations to promote job opportunities for several months. Although this has helped our recruitment efforts it has not yielded the personnel necessary to staff all our pools.
If you are interested in working for DPR this summer, please visit www.denvergov.org/lifeguardsor contact the Aquatics office at 720.865.0660 or [email protected].
Thank you,
Recreation Administration
