City officials said they will be opening Combest Pool to the public on May 29, though whether or not the much smaller Cravens Pool will open this summer is still uncertain.
According to Jennifer Hodges, Owensboro Parks and Recreation assistant facilities manager, CDC and state guidelines are completely based on deck space and square footage of each pool.
While the patio and pool at Combest are large enough to accommodate at least 60 people at once, the Cravens public swimming pool is roughly “three times smaller.”
“Financially, it wouldn’t make sense because we wouldn’t have very many swimmers anyway,” Hodges said. “We could only have 20 people there at a time.”
Cravens Pool remained closed all of last summer because of COVID-19 restrictions, so there could be other issues at hand that affect its ability to be reopened this year.
“There may be a major equipment failure,” Hodges noted. “Major changes [must abide by] the state’s codes. That would be very expensive.”
If there are no major mechanical problems, Hodges said they would try to reopen Cravens if both the CDC’s and Beshear’s guidelines were relaxed. If the mechanical issues turn out to be more expensive than expected, the decision to reopen the pool would fall into the hands of City Commissioners.
Until then, Hodges and her team are excited to see Combest reopen to the public at the end of May.
Private parties can be reserved by calling the Parks & Recreation department at 270-687-8700.
Combest Pool will be open to the public from 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m. May 29, then from 12-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $3.
Owensboro Parks & Recreation is also offering swimming lessons at Combest Pool. The first weekly session begins June 7-11 with class times at either 9:15 a.m. or 10:15 a.m. Lessons are for 5-year-olds and up.
Lessons are $56 per person and include 45 minutes of instruction, 15 minutes of free swim and two free passes to the Edge Ice Center. The deadline to register is May 28.
