Philadelphia pools prepping for summer opening

As the weather heats up, the city of Philadelphia is preparing places for people to cool off. 

Gone are the days of a public collection to open the city’s pools, said Deputy Mayor Michael DiBerardinis. Now the money is secured in the city budget.

“No problems this year, we’ll be open on time and run a full season,” he said. “We’re really looking forward to it … it’s sort of our premiere summer activity.”

DiBerardinis, who heads the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, said pool opening is a big day in many neighborhoods.

“The kids, families look forward to a fun time at the pools, and we are anxious to give it to them this year,” he said.

The first pools begin opening June 19. Spray-parks, the sprinkler areas in some recreation centers, opened last week.  The season will end on a staggered basis starting in mid-August depending on lifeguard availability.