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Crescent City Councilors urged Holly Wendt to pull out the stops to make the grand reopening of the Fred Endert Municipal Pool on July 5 special.

But for many patrons who’ve been kept out of the water since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, the ability to finally swim a couple really good laps will be celebration enough, the recreation director said Monday.

“I think it’s going to be a celebration all day long as people come in,” Wendt told Councilors. “We're going to play a lot of good music and we’ll have some fun recreation time. I'm excited for our lap swim and our aerobics and exercise groups who use it for wellness and physical therapy just to get in the water.”

Wendt brought the proposed July 5 date for reopening the pool to all aquatic services to the Council about a week after the state public health department loosened COVID-19 safety restrictions.

Since the facility had been operating with limited staff since it began offering swim lessons in April, the July 5 reopening date will allow the city to bring on new lifeguards, Wendt said. It also gives them enough time to make arrangements for childcare or other jobs, she said.

Wendt and staff at the pool also prepared for a full reopening based on a June 14 public service announcement from Del Norte County Public Health Officer Dr. Warren Rehwaldt. In that announcement Rehwaldt stated that masks aren’t required for fully vaccinated individuals except on public transit, indoors at K12 schools or in other youth settings and at state and local correctional facilities and detention centers.

“The aquatics team is currently in the process of preparing for a full reopening based on this guidance," Wendt’s staff report stated. “Full reopening will include all aquatic services and access to the locker rooms. Non-vaccinated individuals will be asked to mask in the lobby, locker room and when out of the water on the pool deck.”

Along with approving the reopening date for all pool activities, Councilors adopted the finalized fee schedule proposed at its May 3 meeting.

According to Wendt, the city held a meeting with its pool stakeholders on May 18, who supported the proposed changes. Those who attended weren’t opposed to the proposed fee increases, she said. They also didn’t express that they were too expensive for the community, Wendt said.

Under the new fee schedule, the youth designation will change to serve ages 7 to 17 for a day-use fee of $4, which is less than the previous $5 rate, according to Wendt. The day-use rate for seniors would remain $5 and the day-use fee for adults would increase from $5.50 to $6, according to the new fee schedule.

The new fee schedule calls for implementing 10-punch passes, whose costs would cover nine visits with the 10th visit being free. For example, a youth 10-punch pass would cost $36. Seniors would pay $45 for a 10-punch pass and adults would pay $54, according to Wendt’s presentation.

There will also be a new monthly pass for adults under the new fee schedule while the yearly fee for adult annual passes would increase from $525 to $540, according to Wendt’s presentation. With monthly adult passes costing $60, Wendt said the annual passes would cover nine months with three months for free.

“The methodology is there,” she said, adding that those who attended the pool meeting agreed. “As time goes on, as costs increase incrementally, we have a plan on how to adjust with the economy and with where the community’s going.”

Slide rentals will also increase from $30 to $50, which covers the cost of staff required to operate the slide, according to Wendt. Lifeguard training fees for non-employees will also increase from $100 to $250, according to the staff report.

The new fee schedule calls for discontinuing the pool’s winter sale prices for annual passes — something the stakeholder group felt was unnecessary, according to Wendt. It also calls for discontinuing sale prices on the 10-punch passes and eliminating 50-punch passes, according to Wendt.

According to Wendt’s staff report, the proposed changes to the fee schedule is expected to generate roughly $21,000 in increased revenue.

On Tuesday, the Del Norte Healthcare District authorized a $45,000 donation to go toward swim lessons at the Fred Endert Pool, according to City Manager Eric Wier. An additional $5,000 will help the city get the word out, he told Councilors

"It'll make swimming lessons for anyone wanting them," City Manager Eric Wier said. "If it is acted upon we'll be coming back to the Council for a budget amendment and will be able to advertise that as part of our reopening timing."

According to Wier, the Council will consider a budget amendment that includes the $45,000 donation at a special meeting Thursday. Free swim lessons could begin as early as July 19, he told the Wild Rivers Outpost.

The city will also work with Del Norte Unified School District to continue to offer swim lessons to fourth graders, according to Wendt. However, since last year's fourth-graders missed out on the program, they will also be able to visit the pool during their fifth-grade year, she said.

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