The Sweet Springs pool might not be opening on schedule this year unless more lifeguards are hired.

Members of the Board of Aldermen heard concerns at their regular meeting Monday, May 12, from the pool board about the possibility of not being able to open the pool this summer.

Allison Schowengerdt, pool board president, said the city received two applications for pool manager.

After consideration by the pool board, they asked the board of aldermen to approve hiring Rachel Fizer as manager and the board agreed unanimously under the stipulation that if the pool was not opened, her services would be canceled.

Schowengerdt said she would like Fizer to begin about two weeks prior to the opening of the pool to help prepare the pool for opening, such as sweeping the pool and cleaning other necessary areas.

Public Works Superintendent Hank Taber will help with minor repairs at the pool, according to City Clerk Ronda Nienhueser.

Schowengerdt said the manager is only required to have first aid and CPR certifications. The pool will have two returning guards, Zach Thomas and Morgan Fuehring, who require recertification.

She said the pool would need a minimum of five or six guards; currently they have only two.

The lifeguards are hired by the pool board and do not require the board of aldermen's approval.

The pool board has discussed several ways of trying to attract high school students to work a summer job as a lifeguard.

"We talked about funding training courses," Schowengerdt said. The cost of certification is between $150-$180.

"It's getting steep," she said. She did find out Sedalia would be offering a class May 27 to May 30 that will cost $85.

Mayor Raymond Kinney asked Schowengerdt what the deadline is to find guards before the decision to not open the pool this summer is made.

She said there is no firm date set yet. The opening date for the pool is between May 31 and June 2.

"It depends on the guards," she said about the pool opening date. The two returning guards cannot start until June 2, but if new guards are certified at Sedalia, they will be available to start May 31.

Schowengerdt said she has put a help wanted ad in The Sweet Springs Herald and she had the high school secretary put the information in the bulletin.

Guards will be paid the minimum wage of $6.65 per hour.

She said the board kicked around the idea to pay the guards more as an option to attract them to the pool.

"We are going to run over the wage budget, anyway," Schowengerdt said. She figured there would be 10 weeks for the pool season. There will be two to three guards on shift. The pool is open seven hours per day for seven days a week.

Nienhueser said the pool spent $13,694 in wages last summer. This year the pool has $13,700 budgeted for wages.

Kinney asked where the wage overage would come from.

"It would come out of the swimming pool fund and then out of the general fund at the end of the year (to cover it)," Nienhueser said.

Kinney said he was in favor of paying half of the certification costs and the other half would be taken out through payroll deductions. Then if the guard completed the season, they would get that half back as a bonus at the end of the year.

Schowengerdt said something has to be done because "at this point, we can't open the doors."

Costs for pool passes and daily admissions will remain the same as last year.

"Prices are the same as last year because we raised them last year; we will revisit them next year," Schowengerdt said.

Contact Rachel Harper at marshallcity@socket.net