Editorial: As temps rise into the 90s, Chicago public pools are fully reopened — finally
While many suburban park districts resumed full pool schedules much sooner, Chicago is only now restoring seven-day-a-week access at its public pools.
Starting Saturday, all 50 outdoor pools will be open every day for the first time since the pandemic, and 27 indoor pools will also be accessible six days a week, the Park District announced Monday.
This is fantastic news for parents and kids who can now get in plenty of cannonball practice, as well as the Chicagoans who enjoy swimming a few laps out of doors.
In 2020, all outdoor pools were completely closed because of the pandemic. In 2021 and 2022, the pools reopened but with reduced capacity, fewer hours, fewer days and a shorter season. Even in 2023 and last year, pools often remained open only five or six days a week.
The city says this was due to lifeguard staffing shortages, something many other cities have faced in recent years. Other major metros including New York City and Houston have also struggled to hire sufficient staff to meet demand.
For our part, we can't help viewing the slow-walk back to aquatic normalcy as a symbol of just how long it's taken for Chicago to get over COVID.
To address past lifeguard shortages and build a stronger pipeline, the Chicago Park District launched several recruitment initiatives in late 2023, including the Lifeguard Explorers Training Program targeting teens and young adults on the South and West sides, with stipends and free certification. The district also raised pay to $19.75 per hour, eliminated certification fees and other red tape, held teen job fairs with on-the-spot interviews, and partnered with schools and nonprofits to promote lifeguard training and employment opportunities. As a result, the district received over 3,000 applications — 55% more than in 2024 — and enters summer 2025 with a fully staffed aquatics team.
This is the kind of creative thinking we like to see out of our government agencies. And it's a good thing for our spirits too — open pools are a visible, tangible way to see your tax dollars at work. And while we often grumble here about taxes and spending, we believe people are willing to pay a reasonable and fair amount if they're getting services they value in exchange.
And so we have to applaud some good news out of the Park District, which has not only limited its service over the past several years, but has also been the focus of unsettling sexual harassment stories. In 2021, the Park District's interim inspector general wrote in a report that the investigation into the Park District uncovered multiple locations where the aquatics department had 'long-tolerated hazing behavior fostered an environment where bullying, harassing and sexual misconduct flourished and went unchallenged.'
It's clear the Park District's pool issues extend well beyond a generic staffing problem — it faced a significant culture problem too — one we trust is now resolved.
Fully reopened pools aren't just a relief in the heat — they're a sign of a city finally reclaiming its rhythm. Let's hope the Park District keeps the momentum going, not just in lifeguard hiring, but in restoring public trust.
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