120146161
The sun is beaming down, the air is thick and sweat drips off your brow. Yes, it’s summertime in the city. Luckily, residents have an outlet to stay cool: City swimming pools.
Since June 20, Philadelphia has been opening its public pools’ gates to patrons. South Philly boasts 10 of the City’s 70 swimming destinations.
Destiny DiGregorio, of 15th Street and Oregon Avenue, said she would get bored if she didn’t have a pool to go to. The 10-year-old spent most of her time in the water at Barry, 1800 Johnston St., Saturday, when temperatures hit the mid-90s.
With her pink goggles strapped around her head, she said her favorite thing about the pool is, “going under water.”
“Not to mention she gets a new bathing suit every other time she comes,” said her father, Jim DiGregorio, with a laugh.
As for 12-year-old Jillian Goodwin, of Hicks Street and Oregon Avenue, she enjoys the pool because she “can cool off.” That is, after some fun on the adjoining playground.
Goodwin said she’s already visited Barry five or six times since it opened June 26, making it a summertime favorite spot.
“I do it for her,” Goodwin’s father, Alfred Mazza, said of his poolside time.
“[The pool] gives kids an outlet to burn off some energy, make friends, learn how to swim and have a good time,” he added.
The Marconi spot is among 10 South Philly pools the City opened over the course of 10 days that now are open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and noon to 5 p.m. weekends. The other nine include Chew, 1800 Washington Ave.; Ford, 609 Snyder Ave.; Marian Anderson, 740 S. 17th St.; Murphy, 300 Shunk St.; O’Connor, 2601 South St.; Ridgeway, 1300 Carpenter St.; Sacks, 400 Washington Ave.; Stinger Square, 1400 S. 32nd St.; and Vare, 2600 Morris St.
That’s two times as many pools than the City opened in South Philly in 2009, due to a lack of funding. In 2010, Mayor Michael Nutter’s Splash and Summer FUNd campaign hit its $600,000 private sector goal, giving hope to a community that truly cherishes its pools.
Kris and Lynn Greenwood, a couple from Second and Federal streets, tried out Barry for the first time Saturday. The Greenwoods’ usual pool-of-choice is Murphy, but they drove down to Barry for a change of atmosphere.
“It’s nice because there’s a grassy area and you can spread out and get some shade,” Kris Greenwood said, content with their choice. “This is our new pool.”
In terms of staying cool, Lynn Greenwood said he and his wife enjoy the air conditioning in their house, but like to sit in the sun occasionally, too.
Sometimes it’s too much to go down the Shore every weekend, Kris Greenwood said, “so this is the second best thing I think.”
“I mean what is there really to do in 93-degree weather in South Philadelphia?” Jennifer Dolce, of 16th and Bigler streets, said as she cooled off at Barry.
Dolce likes to head to the pool for some “me” time.
“I love it, I usually get here from like 1 p.m. and stay until 2:30 p.m. On the weekend, I come between like 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.,” she said.
Of course, there’s a bit of rivalry between which pool in South Philly is the greatest.
Dolce, for instance, said Barry is one of the best pools in the area.
“I’m not saying that because I live down the street. I’m just saying overall from living in South Philly my whole life, this is probably one of the best pools,” she said.
But Phil Landis, of Center City, said Marian Anderson, which opened June 29, is “the city’s best kept secret.”
Landis, who comes to the South of South destination to swim every year, especially enjoys going during “adult swim,” which is the last hour the pool is open, to swim laps.
“It increases a sense of community here and it gives us all something we can look forward to and share,” he said of the public pools.
Steven Osterhout, also from Center City, like Landis, travels south to Marian Anderson for exercise.
“It’s very nice to swim in a pool in the community,” he said. “I meet people I wouldn’t meet otherwise, so there’s a nice social aspect.”
And it’s part of good government service, he said.
“It’s a very concrete thing that government can do and it makes me feel good that I live in a place that has services like this.”
Bottom line, Osterhout sees the pool as a dire need for the area.
“Where I grew up, the roofs are not flat like this,” he said, looking through the gate at the surrounding buildings. “The houses are hot, even when they’re air conditioned, and I think a lot of people can’t necessarily afford to run air conditioning much. So just for health reasons, it’s really critical.”
Beate Brockmann, a native of Germany currently residing in Center City, bikes to Marian Anderson regularly to go for a swim.
“Since you don’t pay anything, you can stay for as long as you want or come for five minutes to cool off,” Brockmann said.
Germantown’s Brooke Jordan works weekdays at the Marian Anderson Recreation Center Summer Camp. She said there is a time when only youngsters from the summer camp, ages 5 through 12, are allowed in the pool.
“The swim times [for the children] are from 11 a.m. to noon and then from 2 to 2:45 p.m.,” she said. “After they get out of the pool, they spend the whole time asking when they can go back.”
It’s important the youngsters in the area have access to a safe place to cool off in the heat, she said, noting most of the children head back to the pool after camp ends at 3 p.m.
“I know just from talking to them, this is a central place for them,” Jordan said.
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
120146191
120146171
