I attended a Recreation Commission meeting at City Hall. They opened with the routine public forum, which had no speakers. Given the untimely death of a beloved kindergarten teacher, a memorial would be held . After opening statements, the Commission proceeded to discuss recreational subjects. The construction at Hampton Park was looking good and on schedule, even with the rainfall.

    The Chair of the Commission invited the manager of the pool to the podium to speak on his seasonal status and the upcoming seasons. He presented two very nicely drafted brochures (spring and summer) to go with his presentation. He talked about the winter season that was almost over and how all nine of their lifeguard trainees had passed their examinations.

    After winter, he stated how he was excited for spring because that’s when the activities reappear: swim team, medium and baby pools open again, and swim lessons. In the summer, even more begins to surface. They have a record staff in the summer as that’s the season with the most action. They have 50 total staff members/guards, in general. They also have the Fire Department come and run drill scenarios with the staff in training.

    After the pool report, Recreation Director Sara Lillevand spoke about the Hampton project and the Linda/Beach restrictions. That’s when I asked if the Linda Beach restrictions were in place temporarily because of the construction at Hampton. She said yes. I followed that asking how much longer they would be in place. Ms. Lillevand said that the projected time was until the Hampton project was finished, April 1st if nothing else fails. The reopening of Hampton would be followed by a big barbecue celebration.

By Sophia Landes, Piedmont High School Senior

Editors Note: Opinions expressed are those of the author.