Kyle Roundtree and his nearly two-year-old daughter Lindy were the only people splashing around in the Petersburg aquatic center’s leisure pool on Tuesday evening. It was the first day the pool was back open to the public after being drained in May.
“What do you think of the pool?” Roundtree asked. Lindy held up a plastic dinosaur and splashed at the water.
The pool was drained to facilitate repairs to a sewer line under the locker rooms. Power had to be shut off periodically as crews cut large holes in the concrete floor, and the pool couldn’t operate safely without regular power.
Roundtree said that he and Lindy were able to find other summertime outlets while the pool wasn’t available, but they were happy it’s back.
“It was definitely missed,” he said. “Different kids are in here, and it’s just a different atmosphere coming together. So it’s fun.”
Over by the lap pool, Matt Lenhard had just finished up his workout. He’s a member of Petersburg’s Master Swimmer team, adult swimmers who regularly meet at the aquatic center.
Lenhard said his regular Tuesday swims are an important part of his family’s routine, and it was a sad day when the pool shut down.
“The last swim was kind of a celebratory farewell to the Master Swimmer corps, and just kind of wondering how we’re going to smoothly exercise our muscles and tissues without the agua,” he said.
Lenhard said he kept up his swimming while visiting pools in Ketchikan and Oregon, but he was pleased to have his local pool back.
“The water’s a little on the cooler side,” he said. “And the water is very clean, being one of the first people swimming in it!”
Not everything at the pool is back to normal just yet. Swimmers will need to use the smaller lockers on the gym side while construction continues. Parks and Rec Director Stephanie Payne said there are also limits on how many people can be in one place at a time.
Normally, up to 219 people can be in the aquatic center. Right now, not including staff, only 15 people can be working out on the mezzanine overlooking the pool, and 40 people can be on the pool deck at a given time.
The conduit that powers the sauna was damaged during construction, but Payne said they found a workaround to keep the sauna online.
“People really, really enjoy the sauna, so that was really important to us to make that happen,” she said.
Editor’s note: Matt Lenhard is a volunteer DJ and member of KFSK’s board of directors, which is not involved in newsroom decisions.
