Fun in the sun
Washington Park swimming pool is sporting several improvements this summer, including two new ADA-compliant chairs in the main pool and a ramp in the baby pool. In addition, a fence dividing the two pools has been erected, and a gazebo will be built soon. The pool is scheduled to open Saturday.
Andrew Galley gets ready to clean the filter on the pool vacuum Thursday afternoon as he does the first cleaning of the season in preparation for Canonsburg’s Town Park pool opening Saturday.
As summer quickly approaches and the days get warmer, local pools are gearing up to offer fun in the sun.
Swim season officially kicks off today when Mineral Beach in Finleyville opens its gates – and, for the day, charges no admission fee.
“I think we’re going to have a good season,” said Betty Abel, the pool’s owner, who pointed out that all of the preparation won’t matter if the weather doesn’t cooperate.
“Last year, it was great because it was so hot. I don’t know what to expect this year. We’ll see.”
Swimmers have four public swimming pools in the area to dip their toes in, with a variety of amenities to help them beat the heat.
And they can expect to pay the same as last year to spend a day at the pool, since admission prices at the pools haven’t changed for the 2013 season.
Town Park Pool in Canonsburg offers a large pool with its iconic water fountain, diving boards and a tube slide, and a baby pool featuring a frog slide. The pool includes a full-size bath house for changing clothes and a concession stand that includes hot and cold snacks. Certified lifeguards are on duty at all times.
The pool will be open Saturday, Sunday and Memorial Day, and then Saturdays and Sundays through June 9. It will be open daily from June 10 to Aug. 25.
Sunset Beach pool, a family-owned swimming pool, has been dubbed “1.5 million gallons of fun.” This year, the pool has added a rolling log and a 23-foot trampoline to its arsenal of fun, which includes a winding water slide, splash bucket, water umbrella and diving board.
“We had a trampoline, but this year we got a bigger one,” said Cindy Buri, manager at Sunset Beach. “We think the spinner’s log is going to be a lot of fun.”
A kiddie area with water 1.5-feet deep features three slides: a dinosaur, a whale and a frog.
The pool also offers a wide variety of snacks, hot foods and beverages for swimmers who work up an appetite.
Sunset Beach pool will be open on June 1 and 2, then opens daily for the season on June 7.
Mineral Beach on Route 88 in Finleyville is a zero entry pool reminiscent of a beach because swimmers wade into it the same way they would enter the ocean. The sloped sides are ideal both for children and sunbathers. Families can bring rafts, floaties and pool toys to Mineral Beach, and the Friday night car cruises, which have been around for decades, continue to draw car enthusiasts to the pool.
Washington Park Pool will open on weekends beginning on Saturday and will open daily after Washington School District schools complete classes in June. The regular pool is an L-shaped pool that includes a diving board and a slide. It also includes ADA-compliant chair lifts for handicapped guests. The tot pool is undergoing renovation to make it ADA-compliant, but pool director Terry Faust said it should be ready within the next two weeks barring any unforseen problems.
“We draw people from the surrounding communities including North Franklin, South Strabane and Canton, among others, and the volume of passes we sold last year was an increase, so that’s a good thing,” said Faust. “We think we’ll do fine this year.”