POOL ATTENDANCE WAY DOWN; COOL WEATHER HAS KEPT SWIMMERS AWAY IN JUNE

Area municipal pools have been getting the cold shoulder from residents since Memorial Day because of unseasonably cool weather.

Doug Gannon, recreation and aquatics coordinator for the Cape Girardeau Parks Department, said attendance was down by a third during this Memorial Day weekend compared to last year; 627 people have used the Capaha Park pool this year compared to 990 by this time in 1996.

"I would chalk most of that up to the weather," Gannon said. "We never expect when the summer starts for it to be cool like this."

The water temperature has been running between 70 and 75 degrees, Gannon said. That's about 10 degrees cooler than Gannon would like the temperature to be during the summer.

He said the cooler water wouldn't feel that bad if the air temperature would climb closer to the 90-degree mark. Cape Girardeau's pools are not heated electronically.

"That's up to Mother Nature," Gannon said. "The overcast and the rain have really hindered the water warming up and people coming to the pool."

Gannon said he expects the attendance to climb as the mercury begins to rise.

The low attendance doesn't necessarily mean financial hardship for the city's pools. Even with the less favorable weather, the new slide at the Capaha Park pool has been well used.

"We're anticipating record numbers over in Capaha this year," Gannon said. "Whatever we lose now we'll make up later on this summer."

For now the weather is taking its toll on even the diehard fitness swimmers, who are waiting for warmer waters, Gannon said. "It just doesn't seem like it's been summer yet," he said.

Carlen Keller, a lifeguard and instructor and the Cape Girardeau Central High School pool, said the cool weather makes a big difference in how enthusiastic swim students are about their lessons.

"It's harder to be a teacher and persuade the kids to get in when you're cold yourself." Keller said. "But their parents are paying for it and they get very disappointed if you don't get in there with them."

Temperature and attendance aren't the only things that are down at the Scott City Municipal Park pool. Employee hours have been dropping as most of the children head home around 5 p.m. when it starts getting chilly. That means most of the lifeguards do too.

Phyllis Spinks, Scott City park director, said visitors to the city's pool have dropped by about a half compared to last year. She said even Memorial Day weekend was washed out by rain and cool weather.

Spinks said the weather hasn't hurt swim lessons, which started Monday. She said only one family asked that their lessons be moved to later in the year.

She said with Summerfest on the way and swim meets starting this weekend, she hopes for warm weather to heat things up a little bit.

"Although if the weather stays cool we could probably have activities all day long," Spinks said of Summerfest.