Mount Vernon Rec Center opens under new management
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
Sentinel Photo/TRAVIS MORSE
NEW MANAGEMENT — The Mt. Vernon Rec Center has opened under new management. It is now a community pool open to the public and a nonprofit, instead of being an exclusive club. Pictured, FROM LEFT, are four members of the center’s Board of Directors — Matt Flanigan, Cissy Hanagan, Kathy Phillips and Nida Woodfall.
MOUNT VERNON — It’s a new day for the Mt. Vernon Rec Center at 311 N. 34th St.
Formerly known as the Mt. Vernon Recreation Club, the newly reopened Mt. Vernon Rec Center is now a community pool open to the public as opposed to an exclusive club only for members. The facility is also now a 501©3 nonprofit organization and is managed by new leadership, the Rec Center Board. The facility opened under its new name and management over Memorial Day Weekend.
“It started years ago as an exclusive social club,” said Rec Center Board Member Matt Flanigan. “What’s exciting now is it’s a pool open to the entire community, and all are welcome. Come swim and we’re here to serve and to promote health and wellness and swimming safety classes and things like that, and just good times for families and friends to come swim.”
The Rec Center does charge fees for the use of its pool facilities and participation in its programs. However, the facility also has a program whereby low-income people can apply to receive reduced fees for season passes and swim lessons if they meet the requirements based on income, need and hardship, said Rec Center Board President Kathy Phillips.
The center offers family, individual and season passes, as well as day passes, for use of the pool facilities on site. There are also swim lessons and water aerobics classes available, and private party rental opportunities.
“It’s a new start for us,” Phillips said, adding of the Rec Center Board, “We all work together and we want it to be for the community and want to serve the community and want anybody to come that can come.”
According to a Rec Center news release, the annual dues that used to be paid when it was a Rec Club are now called season passes. The Rec Center Board is responsible for managing the pool, and there are extended hours and programs offered. Donations can also be made to the facility that are tax-deductible. The center will also be holding fundraisers to help cover the costs of opening and maintaining the facility.
Besides the Aquatic Zoo, the Mt. Vernon Rec Center is the city’s only neighborhood pool and offers a quiet place to swim and relax and is great for families with young children since it offers an enclosed baby pool and swim lessons, the release states. It also has adult swim hours, aerobics, and other classes for all ages.
“The Rec Center is a great facility for our community to have where families can come and be together and learn to swim and have a good time,” Flanigan said.
Rec Center Board Member Nida Woodfall said she loves that the center is a community-oriented facility. The center hopes to book parties in the future and they also have a foam machine for kids. There’s a concession stand and it’s an ideal place to have a birthday party, she said.
“To have swim lessons available and spaces for families to go … lifeguards to be certified. That all happens here and it’s all for the community,” Woodfall said. “And we hope when we have our fundraisers, they’ll come back to bless us because our intent is to open it more to the community.”
Rec Center Board Member Cissy Hanagan said what she likes seeing is how the pool is multi-generational and can be enjoyed by all.
“You will see people who were swimming here when they were younger (who) now are either parents or grandparents,” Hanagan said. “And so you see just that love of the center continues. Once you were here as a kid, then when you grow up, you bring your family here.”
The Rec Center Board of Directors includes: Phillips, Flanigan, Woodfall, Hanagan, Ryan Burge, Emily Tynes, and Allison Harris.
The pool hours for 2024 include Monday through Thursday when lap swimming is open from 7 to 9 a.m., adult swimming is from 10 a.m. to noon, and open swimming is from noon to 8 p.m. On Friday, there are the same times for lap and adult swimming but the open swim is from noon to 6 p.m.
There are only open swimming periods on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, it is from noon to 6 p.m. and on Sunday, it is from 1 to 6 p.m. The baby pool is open to families during adult swim and open swim hours.
For more information on Mt. Vernon Rec Center, Inc., call (618) 315-2139 or email recclub2015@gmail.com.
Sentinel Photo/TRAVIS MORSE
COMMUNITY POOL — The Mt. Vernon Rec Center at 311 N. 34th St. is now open to the public. There are opportunities to purchase season passes and day passes, as well as swim lessons, water aerobics, and private party rentals.
