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Hialeah parks report busy summer; managers say pool repairs and staffing remain priorities
Summary
Parks and Recreation staff told the council the city—s summer programs ran at high participation, with expanded swim lessons, leagues and camps. Officials said four pools remain closed, Bucky Dent pool needs major repairs, and the department plans contracts to accelerate pipe and facility fixes.
HIALEAH, Fla. — Hialeah—s parks and recreation department briefed the City Council Tuesday on an active summer of programming and on remaining facility repairs, particularly pool and aquatic infrastructure that city staff said will take multi-year work to fully restore.
Willie Sanchez, parks director, and staff reported summer highlights: more than 900 participants in paid camps and recreation programs; 300 participants in the city—s basketball league, which the director called "the largest league in Dade County" this year; travel and competitive youth sports growth; and new activities including archery classes and parent-and-me toddler programming.
Douglas Cordovi, parks aquatics supervisor, said staffing levels reached 80 applicants hired this year, enabling expanded pool hours and increased lessons including a new snorkeling class and adult swim programming. "We were able to recruit the staff that we needed for this summer," Cordovi said, adding that lifeguard training and customer-service improvements helped maintain operations.
Pools and repairs
Officials told council members that several pools remain out of general public service. Bucky Dent pool has been out of operation since the COVID years and needs a phased rebuild, department leaders said; staff identified multiple leaks and deferred maintenance that must be fixed before the pool can reopen for routine public use. Cordovi and other staff said they expect the facility to reopen in a phased way next year and that the administration is pursuing contracts to repair and resurface pools.
The parks director also said a city consultant recently completed a review of pool facilities and the administration will provide a report to the mayor and council within weeks listing estimated repair costs and timetables.
Participation and awards
The department highlighted an expanded summer-learn-to-swim initiative that provided 97 residents with free lessons through partnerships with local commissioners. Parks and recreation staff said their archery youth club won a statewide award for educational programming, and volunteer programs also received state recognition.
Cost, staffing and next steps
Staff asked for continued council support for advancing repairs and for finalizing three large contracts in the coming months to accelerate pipe lining, leak detection and surface repairs. Council members asked for timetables and cost breakdowns and requested updates about when closed pools would reopen for general public use.
The parks and recreation annual report and a fuller facilities presentation were scheduled to return to the council at a later meeting.
