As fans of fair weather wait for it to warm up, staff at Gilley Pool in McMinnville have been working diligently to prepare for the pool’s summer opening.
McMinnville Wellness and Aquatics Coordinator Katie Smartt said the pool provides a family-friendly atmosphere and a refreshing spot to cool off all summer long.
“She’s my girl, you know, it’s a a back-and-forth relationship,” Smartt said. “There’s days that I get very frustrated, but I mean, she’s a lot to handle. But she’s 800,000 gallons almost, the pool deck is 20,000 square feet, so she’s a lot of space to maintain. But between our maintenance staff and and our the other employees here, like we all work together.”
Smartt said the pool is fully staffed with 32 lifeguards in rotation. Following the improvements to the water slide and water features last year, Smartt said the pool is almost ready for summer patrons, from lap swimmers to frolicking children.
“We’ve been busy getting the pool cleaned and, you know, the water balanced, you know, pressure washing the deck, prepping bathrooms, all the good things that lead up to opening day,” Smartt said. “And I’ve got swim team who’s already started, so they’ve been in the water, but we open to the public officially on May 23rd.”
Smartt said she has some 20 lifeguards returning to duty, along with four new hires, a pool manager and four head guards. Smartt said the current preparation involves a collaborative effort between the maintenance staff and Director Justin Scott to get the pool ready for the public.
“You do need individuals that can stay calm under pressure, and can also have those customer service skills and the soft skills you need when interacting with the public,” Smartt said. “And that’s something that we do focus on when it comes to our (lifeguard) training.”
Smartt said the team includes a pool manager and four head guards who are undergoing in-service training to handle water and deck emergencies. Smartt said the facility is prepared to manage its maximum capacity of 800 people with a daily rotation of 10 lifeguards to ensure the staff does not experience burnout.
The pool will also play host to a special programming this summer, including a dive-in movie night held in conjunction with the Movies in the Park series.
“We have a great space, a very family-friendly oriented, pool and community in general here,” Smartt said. “There’s diving boards, there’s the slides, we have the zero entry, lap lanes, you know, we have just something for everybody.”