Opening day for summer makes its splash soon

Memorial Day weekend is quickly approaching, which signals another summertime holiday � opening day for public swimming pools and water parks May 26.

Cape Splash Family Aquatic Center

Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation director Julia Jones said �phase 3� for Cape Splash Family Aquatic Center is about to be underway, which will unveil �Splash Reef,� thanks, in part, to the parks/stormwater tax extension passed April 8.

The tax extension includes funds for upgrades to Cape Splash and Central Municipal Pool, and funds also will go toward a new aquatic complex in the future.

�We have done a master plan of the water park a number of years ago and we�ve been able to complete phase 1, which was the slide,� Jones said. �Phase 2 was the Lazy River and the pirate ship. Phase 3 is an expansion into what we�re calling Splash Reef.�

Zaven Leible jumps off the diving board June 12, 2016, at Harmon Field Swimming Pool in Chaffee, Missouri.Fred Lynch

She said the new expansions would contain �more shallow water pools, a new restroom and concession area� on the side of the park.

Jones sees a potential project completion date within the next four to five years, but said it�s just �a bit too early� in the planning to set a definite timeframe.

�We�re currently making those types of determinations as to exactly when we would want to make those improvements,� she said.

As for activities within the park, Jones said �river walking� has become more popular and takes place in the morning before the facility is open to the public. In addition, Cape Splash also hosts special adult swim events and sets aside time for preschools.

She said the facility is usually �so crowded and so packed,� there are times Cape Splash employees �have to hold attendance� when capacity of 1,000 is reached.

�It gets very full very quickly, especially when it�s hot out,� Jones said.

Which is why, she said, when phase 3 is completed, it will allow room for more visitors in the waterpark.

She said Cape Splash is the city�s most popular facility �for the season,� when calculating from Memorial Day to Labor Day and said people from all over the region � not just city residents � make a trip to Cape Girardeau for Cape Splash.

�I think this summer is just really going to be chock-full of a lot of fun,� Jones said.

Central Municipal Pool

Jones said the protective �bubble� is usually removed from Central Municipal Pool around the first or second week of May, and there already have been some minor updates made within the facility, with additional ones planned as well.

�We just recently painted and drained the pool, to get it ready for the summer,� she said.

She said plans for the new aquatic complex have not been defined, but �you should be hearing more about those soon, probably over the summer.�

As for the Central Municipal Pool, Jones said new deck lighting would be installed along with �potentially reworking some of the pump systems.�

�We don�t want to spend a large amount of money when we know we�re going to be replacing the facility,� she said. �But we just want to make sure it�s operational as possible for the summer.�

Jackson City Pool

City of Jackson Parks and Recreation director Shane Anderson said the Jackson City Pool has been �very active every summer� since it�s opening in 1976.

�It�s a very happy place to be for a lot of folks,� he said. �Everybody wants to be there.�

The pool opens May 26, which is when all the programs � including swim lessons � are open for registration.

�We start our basic swim lessons on July 19,� Anderson said. �We�ll do that through the summer months. We also do private parties.�

�Junior Lifesaving� is another program Jackson City Pool hosts during the summer. Anderson said it�s a good program for young people to be involved in who may want to become a lifeguard someday.

�But also it�s just a great skill to have. We�ve got a lot of interest in it,� he said. �It�s also just good if you�re going to spend a lot of time around the pool.�

Anderson said Jackson City Pool also hosts family days on Sundays, which are really popular.

He said the pool�s �Tadpoles� program is great for children ages 2 to 4, with it being similar to basic swim lessons for older children.

�It�s earlier in the morning, and we�ve had pretty good response from that,� Anderson said. �The younger swimmers want to get in there and get a little instruction and confidence in the water.�

Harmon Field Swimming Pool

According to a Chaffee, Missouri, City Hall employee, the Harmon Field Swimming Pool is an aboveground pool erected in 1940, with the groundbreaking held in 1938 � and is �still up and running.�

She said the estimated cost of the construction at the time was $22,000 and the land was donated to the city in 1925.

�We only charge a dollar to swim,� she said. �We have a day session and we open again at 6 p.m. until 8 p.m.�

jhartwig@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3632