Needham Parks & Recreation flags lifeguard shortage risk, plans limited pool hours and steady fees
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Summary
Parks and Recreation told the Finance Committee rising staffing challenges could affect pool hours and camps this summer; the department is keeping most membership pricing steady while nudging daily rates to encourage season passes.
Needham Parks and Recreation staff told the Finance Committee on Feb. 5 that seasonal staffing — especially lifeguards — is coming in more slowly this year than in prior summers and that the department is planning limited pre-season hours and full operations once school ends to manage the risk.
Staff said they prefer to hire earlier in the year but historically fill positions later; this year, recruiting progress is slower and the department urged residents to encourage prospective lifeguards to apply. The pool requires many lifeguards to operate a 7-day schedule during the summer: staff said the program typically needs roughly 50to 60 lifeguards across shifts to maintain rotation and coverage, and noted a 1-to-25 in-water lifeguard-to-swimmer regulatory standard for shifts.
The department reported a slight overall budget increase of about 2.9% driven mainly by salary step increases, and it upgraded one administrative-specialist position to an administrative analyst to handle procurement and contract workload. Camps and pool programs operate largely through revolving funds and are intended to be self-funded; staff said membership sales are preferable to daily fees for financial stability and that last year memberships declined while daily fees rose. The department plans modest fee adjustments this year intended to encourage season-pass purchases, and staff expects about 70% of season-pass holders to be Needham residents.
Staff also said they are exploring extended hours where feasible (limited lap swim) before the full summer schedule begins, and that final program brochures and fee schedules should be available by February vacation. Committee members requested a profit-and-loss breakdown for the pool showing revenue and expenses for the previous year and projections for the coming season.
Ending: Parks and Recreation will provide the requested P&L report and finalize fee schedules; the department warned managers and the Finance Committee that staffing availability will be the main limiter on program expansion or longer hours this summer.