Clarendon Aquatic Center
Grand Opening: May 28, 2021 Come make a big splash in Clarendon! After six years of fundraising, planning, and construction, the $2.7 million Clarendon Aquatic Center will hold a Grand Opening on Friday, May 28, 2021, and will be open to the public for the Memorial Day weekend. Project designer Steve Shank of WatersEdge, the Kansas firm that has designed the pool, says, “This is going to be a good pool and the citizens here will love it.” The center will be open regularly from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and will be closed on Mondays. Day passes will cost $5 for everyone over the age of 17, $4 for ages 4-17, and free for ages three and under. Annual passes are $100 per individual and $250 for a family of up to four members and $50 for each additional household family member. Parties can be scheduled at the aquatic center after hours at a rate of $125 per hour. City officials are also working with the Donley County Senior Citizens Center to plan senior activities, and "adults only" swim times are being considered as well. Trinity Cavanaugh will be the pool manager for the aquatic center, and the facility is expected to employ about a dozen lifeguards for the summer season. City officials will begin filling and treating the pool about April 1, and the first 12
public event at the pool will be the Polar Bear Plunge held in conjunction with the Lions Club’s annual Chance Mark Jones Roar & Run 5K on Saturday, April 17. Features of the center include a Zero Depth Entry area, which is a gradually sloping entrance for easy accessibility; and a large Shallow Play Area with several attractions for younger children. Those attractions include a Toddler Slide, a Large Spray, Trio Dump Buckets, and Underwater Bubblers as well as shaded sitting area. Adjacent to that play area is a Spray Ground that young children will also enjoy. The Shallow Play Area connects on one side to the larger pool area that is 65’ long and accommodates three Lap Lanes. That area also has a Basketball Goal, a Volleyball Net, a ¾-meter Diving Stand, and a Climbing Wall. The facility also features a lift and specially designed steps to accommodate those with disabilities. The Clarendon Aquatic Center project began in 2015 when an anonymous benefactor offered $500,000 to the city for a water recreation facility if the funds could be matched. With major funding from the Clarendon Economic Development Corporation, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, and numerous donors, the match was exceeded, and ground was broken on the facility on September 17, 2019.
CLARENDON WELCOME GUIDE • SPRING / SUMMER 2021
