Greenfield revives park board, begins looking for pool lifeguards

It may be cold outside, with winter weather still dominating the forecast, but parks and recreation were top of mind for the Greenfield City Council during its Tuesday, Jan. 27, meeting.

The council approved two measures related to the topic: reestablishing the parks and recreation board and authorizing the recruitment of summer lifeguards for the municipal swimming pool.

Lifeguards will receive a 3% wage increase from previous seasons. The city administrator said there may also be a small additional wage increase for pool managers.

“Why we’re doing this now is that it rolls around really fast,” Mayor Brian Fox said. “Sometimes we get caught with a really short window to try to find people to do this. Hopefully, by doing this now, we’ll have everything ready to go on opening day.”

Because of work done by the Operation Pool Committee, letters will be sent to lifeguards from previous years asking if they would be willing to return. Half of last year’s dozen lifeguards have certifications that would need to be renewed if they choose to come back. Pool leaders are working to identify training opportunities to allow that to occur.

Operation Pool Committee member Deb Parrott credited city staff for being easy to work with as preparations begin for another season and the eventual reopening of the pool.

The council also approved the creation of a five-member parks and recreation board, replacing a previous board that had dissolved. Council members have discussed the idea previously and said there is sufficient interest from community members willing to serve. The board will feature staggered terms.

The parks and recreation board, which is expected to meet quarterly, will work with the council and city staff to provide oversight and recommendations for amenities such as the swimming pool, parks, trails, the sports complex and the disc golf course at Lake Greenfield.

Council member Jonathan Christensen, who currently helps advise on parks and recreation matters along with council member Rita Eble, said he hopes the board will include local residents with a variety of perspectives to reflect its broad scope of responsibilities. He said parks and recreation are often treated as a lower priority and hopes the board can help elevate their importance.

Carns added to that:

“I think we would want this board to have really good guardrails, as far as this is what the council is asking of you,” she said. “Maybe it’s two or three really good recommendations every year and a lot of really good input to the council.”

Officials said city hall staff, public works and community development leaders will likely be involved in the board’s initial meetings.

“It’ll take them a little bit to learn the ropes,” Fox said. “Once they get their feet wet, I think it’ll be a really good asset for us. It takes a little bit of load off these guys.”