usha barry
October 25, 2017 13:30
A friend offered to give my kids pointers on breast stroke for a couple of days at the East Boulder Community Center pool. She is not a swim instructor, just a fellow mom who wanted to help-out. The first day, there were no issues and fees were charged only for those swimming or using the facility equipment (makes sense). The next day, the staff suddenly would not allow our friend in without paying the daily fee, even though she wasn't swimming or using the facility herself. Not a huge deal; she paid the fee and came in. About 20 minutes later, a lifeguard tells us that that "lessons" can only be given by their own instructors and we couldn't continue in the future. Huh? No one can get advice on their swimming technique at a public pool? You'd think the recreation department would be in favor of kids swimming and being open to improvement. There were no issues raised the day before, but we only had two sessions planned anyway. Between their inconsistent, absurd policies, and the nickel-and-diming this place engages in (Charging for towels? Why not just check them out with an ID like at Bob Burger?), I'd recommend people check out other pool options. The Lafayette Recreation Center isn't far away and is a National Gold Medal Winner in Parks and Recreation. The Lafayette Recreation Aquatics Director has since informed me that if no money is exchanged for the "lesson" (it wasn't), then they would have no problem having our friend give our kids pointers at their pool. The City of Boulder could learn a thing or two from Lafayette about building community and running an excellent facility that looks out for patrons.