Brookhaven reports big jump in pool use and plans reusable swim-diaper requirement after fewer contamination incidents

Julie Dobbs, the city’s aquatic supervisor, told the Brookhaven City Council at a work session that the parks and recreation department recorded about 61,000 pool entries during the 2025 season, up from roughly 42,000 in 2024, and described a suite of operational changes she says improved safety and access.

The increase in attendance coincided with a staff push on customer service, additional lifeguards and extra police patrols at high-use locations, Dobbs said. “This season we had 61,000 people come through the pool gates,” she said, noting that the city added lifeguards and used clearer signage to explain policies to patrons.

Dobbs emphasized a drop in contamination events, attributing the reduction to education and distribution of swim diapers. “In 2024, we had 11 incidents,” she said. “This year we had 5 incidents, and they were all at the Linwood pool.” She said staff handed out swim diapers during adult‑swim periods and educated parents about proper swim attire to protect filters and public health.

The presentation detailed equipment and safety upgrades: the city installed on‑site Perry weather stations at Briarwood and Linwood pools to provide real‑time lightning and air‑quality alerts visible to lifeguards and patrons, and added monitors and a downloadable widget so residents can check pool delays from their phones. Dobbs said the alarm system was disengaged for the off season to avoid neighborhood disturbance.

Dobbs also highlighted partnerships that expanded lessons and outreach: the YMCA provided the Safety Around Water program (free classes, mostly serving Hispanic/Latinx families ages 4–12), and a partnered swim school offered scholarship and parent‑taught classes at Linwood, Briarwood and Murphy Candler. She said the city collected and distributed more than 250 swimwear items during a Back to Pool event to reduce financial barriers to appropriate swim attire.

Special events drew community engagement: a dive‑in movie (Moana 2) persisted through a thunderstorm with about 60 attendees, and a doggy‑dip day drew roughly 200 dogs. Dobbs said the swim team finally received starting blocks late in the season and will use them in competition next year.

Looking ahead, Dobbs proposed requiring reusable swim diapers for children 3 and under and exploring expanded lap‑swim hours and mobile aquatics chairs for patrons with special needs. “We cut the incidents in half this year. We’re hoping to see that number be 0 next year,” she said. Council members praised the improvements and asked staff to continue refining hours, parking and enforcement for busy pools.

The aquatics briefing concluded with council praise but no formal decision; the work session adjourned and voting on agenda items was postponed because the council lacked a quorum.