Weekly Recap and Look-Ahead - 6/2/2022
Opening Weekend Recap
We had a great opening weekend, reaching capacity at the pool on Memorial Day for several hours. The wait wasn’t too long, so everyone got a chance to use the pool. We also had a LOT of children under 13 complete the SwimSafe Test! The Snack Bar was open and very well received. Pretty much everyone was very good about our “no guest” policy, which will be in effect again on the 4th of July weekend. As a reminder, we still have several dozen memberships that have not completed their 2022 Membership Audit. If you are one of those memberships, please remember that you must complete the audit to gain access to the Pool this season (in addition to ensuring your Maintenance Fees and any applicable penalties are paid-in-full).
Pool Headcount Capacity
For those of you who had to wait in line on Memorial Day weekend to enter the Pool (which was at capacity between about 12:30p and 4:00p), we appreciate your patience both with our NV Pool lifeguards and staff, as well as Board members manning the front desk. We attribute the high demand for the Pool to the gorgeous weather this past weekend, as well as a return to "normal" demand for the facility as we have all adapted to Covid-19 as part of our every day life (unfortunately). The Board anticipates hitting capacity limits other weekends this summer. A reminder that the Fairfax County Fire Marshal limits our Pool to a 248 person headcount max capacity. We strongly encourage members to check the headcount status on the Pool website here: http://enet.hopto.org/gbpool.html. Please note that this website sometimes takes 10-30 seconds to render with data depending on website traffic and your individual connection speed. The Board reminds everyone to be courteous and respectful to Pool staff and other Pool members, especially in the context of having to wait to access the property.
Reminder About Snack Bar / Grilling Area Seating
This weekend we had quite a few families using the picnic tables near the Snack Bar and the grilling area by the grills as a permanent spot to park their families for the duration of their Pool stay. The Board opted not to address that with those members this past weekend as a courtesy. However, those picnic tables are intended to be used on a temporary / rotating basis by members who are using the grills or eating food from the Snack Bar. Please do not use these areas as places to park your belongings while you are swimming at the pool. If this continues, we will post additional signage near those tables as a reminder. As a related reminder, there’s no food or drink (except for water) allowed on the pool deck except in the areas right next to the snack bar. We’ve got the “No Food or Beverages” signage up, so please pay attention to it!
Additional Chaise Lounge Seating Coming
Last season we had to discard approximately 15 broken chaise lounge chairs for safety reasons. The Board has more chaise lounges on order, so there will be extra seating available in the coming 1-2 weeks. Notably the baby pool area was missing many of its usual lounge chairs, which should be re-supplied in the near term. Members may also bring your own portable/folding seats to the pool if you wish, though your furniture remains YOUR responsibility and you need to keep it out of the Pool.
Swim / Dive Teams & Capacity Through End of School Year
For the next week, while Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) are still in session, the Pool will be busy in the afternoons for Swim and Dive team practices. The Board is aware that this past Tuesday the Pool was at capacity again and that some swim team participants in the later sessions were unable to access the Pool due to the headcount capacity limit, which is unfortunate. Our teams are large this year, and we may continue to reach capacity during the week during practice times until school is out and swim practices move to the weekday mornings. There won’t be any afternoon lap swimming on weekdays until June 13th, when FCPS schools aren't in session and our normal swim and dive practices (Swim practice from 7:30-10:30 AM, and Dive practice until 11:30 AM and from 5:15-7 PM) resume. The Swim and Dive meets are already on the pool calendar on our website.
Special Activities / Extracurricular Events Update
We had a successful 2021 season with a number of events orchestrated by our Special Activities-focused Board member, Bethany Quick. We will be releasing an update to the Pool calendar in the coming week with Special Activities and other after hour events scheduled for the 2022 season. One request the Board received after the 2021 season was for more Adult Late Nights if possible, and Bethany is trying to accommodate that request by adding a handful of additional Adult Late Nights that would not be catered or DJ'd, but that would allow members to access the pool after hours (with Pool guards paid overtime to cover the facility). PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDAR - the first Adult Late Night is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, June 11, 2022. More details will be provided in this regard in the coming week.
Update Regarding Side Lot Sport Courts
The Board was pleased to have been able to have the side parking lot resurfaced with new basketball hoops installed prior to opening day. Many members are aware of the desire to install basketball court lines and pickleball court lines. The Board continues to work with our chosen vendor to have those installed, but at this time have not received an install date due to a backlog of projects ahead of us. We will keep members apprised when that work will occur, likely later in June (but ideally sooner).