CINCINNATI – City swimming pools and spraygrounds will open on schedule with no shortage of lifeguards expected, according to the city recreation department.
Nine spraygrounds will open today.
Four pools – Dunham, Dempsey, McKie and Pleasant Ridge – will open Saturday.
Oakley's new pool will have a soft opening on Saturday with a grand opening celebration at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 7.
The remaining pools will open on Monday, June 6.
FIND a list of pools and spraygrounds with links to operating times and maps.
Free swim lessons will be offered thanks to a generous donation from Crossroads Church, according to Daniel Butts, director of the Cincinnati Recreation Commission.
More than 200 lifeguards have been hired and another 35 are needed, Butts said.
"We are confident we will fill those positions with our recruiting efforts and with swimmers who have been taking our classes throughout the year," he said.
The CRC is looking for swimmers 15 and older to take the Lifeguard Certification Class. Classes begin on May 27, May 31, June 6 and July 7.
"We have a strategic plan to replenish our lifeguards with a system we hope will keep us ahead of the game," Butts said.
The CRC hired 27 14-year-olds through the city's Youth to Work program to serve as aquatic interns, working around the pools.
"It is our hope that when they reach the age of 15 and can take the Red Cross Certified Training Course that they will become lifeguards for us next year," Butts said. "This is in addition to our long-time Red Cross Junior Lifeguard program for 11-14-year-olds. We have 190 kids enrolled in that program for this summer."
For information about becoming a lifeguard or to register for a lifeguard screening, go to www.cincyrec.org/pools. Or email aquatics@cincinnati-oh.gov or call 513-357-POOL (7665).
