photo by: Mike Yoder

Swimmers enjoy the cool water on Friday, July 26, 2019, at the Lawrence Outdoor Aquatic Center, 727 Kentucky St.

The city’s Outdoor Aquatic Center will be closing two weeks early this summer because of staffing and financial issues.

“We typically have gone from Memorial Day to Labor Day,” said Roger Steinbrock, marketing supervisor with the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department. However, this year the outdoor pool at 727 Kentucky St. is set to close for the season on Aug. 18. This is despite the fact that July attendance this year has been about 32 percent higher than July of last year.

According to Steinbrock, attendance last July was 13,752, and this July so far it has been 18,141 — a difference that he speculated was related to the heat this year.

A number of factors have played into the decision to close early, Steinbrock said. A big issue has been the early departure of a lot of college and high school students who work as lifeguards and return to school in mid-August. In past summers the pool would sometimes have a shortage of staff so dire that no one could man the slide or diving board areas, he said.

“Number one is safety,” Steinbrock said of the need for lifeguards.

Plus, during late August, a lot of people take vacation, so the pool just isn’t as busy, he said. Additionally, school starts in mid-August, further reducing pool attendance.

“We put the pencil to paper and looked at the cost and what it was bringing in,” Steinbrock said, and it didn’t make sense to remain open two additional weeks.

photo by: Mike Yoder

Deacon Bradford, 7, of Lincoln, Neb., stands under a spray of water on Friday, July 26, 2019, at the Lawrence Outdoor Aquatic Center, 727 Kentucky St.

The lifeguard shortage has been a growing problem. Steinbrock said he wasn’t sure if it was the pay being offered — they start at $9 per hour — or the fact that young people are not wanting the exposure to the sun.

“When I was a kid lifeguarding was a big thing,” Steinbrock said.

The Indoor Aquatic Center, 4706 Overland Drive, will be closed Sunday through Aug. 18 for maintenance. It will reopen the day the outdoor pool closes.

Steinbrock said the outdoor pool had closed early at least once before in his 17 years on the job because of staffing issues; he wasn’t sure what year it was, but he said it was the last week of August, not two weeks before Labor Day, which is commonly considered the unofficial end of summer.

This year’s early closing comes amid budget challenges for Parks and Recreation and discussions about charging entrance fees to currently free recreation centers and possibly closing the downtown Community Building for drop-in use.

“When we look at the numbers from previous years and the staffing needs … we have to be good stewards of citizens’ money,” Steinbrock said.

“People love swimming, especially when it’s hot out. But we have to make the decision for good financial management.”

The annual Pooch Plunge, a popular event for dogs, is scheduled for 4 to 7 p.m. on Aug. 19.

photo by: Mike Yoder

Children play with a water gun on Friday, July 26, 2019, at the Lawrence Outdoor Aquatic Center, 727 Kentucky St.

photo by: Mike Yoder

Children try to keep their balance on a floating obstacle course on Friday, July 26, 2019, at the Lawrence Outdoor Aquatic Center, 727 Kentucky St.