Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pool Operation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Franklin City Council keeps municipal pool closed, cites enforcement and liability concerns
Summary
Franklin City Council voted to keep the municipal pool closed for now, saying Ohio’s COVID-19 operational guidance is difficult to enforce, lifeguard staffing is limited, and liability risks are significant; city staff said maintenance work could be completed by mid-June but no reopening date was set.
Franklin City Council decided May 18 to keep the city pool closed for the immediate future, citing the practical challenge of enforcing Ohio’s COVID-19 guidance and concerns about staff capacity and liability.
"The restrictions in reality make it very difficult and labor intensive to actually safely operate the pool," City Manager Sonny Lewis told council members during the work-session discussion. Pool Manager Stephanie Credit said supervising compliance with the rules would not be realistic for staff. Council member Debbie Fouts added that lifeguards typically hired by the city are teenagers who should not be tasked with enforcing extensive pandemic rules.
Law Director Lynnette Dinkler recommended the use of a liability waiver and suggested limiting attendance to City and Township residents if the pool were to open. Mr. Lewis said the pool’s filter project is slated to start the first week of June and will take three to four weeks to complete, and that, absent lifeguard training, the earliest the pool could be readied is June 15. The mayor directed staff to keep the pool closed and set no reopening date.
The discussion framed the decision as operational rather than permanent: council members said they would revisit the issue if state guidance changes. The council cited public-safety and staffing considerations and the prospect of backlash if the city attempted to enforce the lengthy restrictions on a largely teenage lifeguard corps.
