Ephrata’s Splash Zone won’t open; Quincy, ML mull water park openings

EPHRATA — The city of Ephrata has to decided to keep its Splash Zone water park closed this year as a result of the statewide closures prompted by the COVID-19 outbreak.

According to City Administrator Mike Warren, Gov. Jay Inslee’s phased reopening of the state would mean that Splash Zone would not be able to reopen until at least early August. Because of that, the park would only get a month of use if the reopening process went smoothly.

“It takes a long time to train lifeguards and get the pool ready,” said Warren.

It costs Ephrata roughly $300,000 to run Splash Zone for the nearly three months it is open from mid-June to early September. However, only around half that cost is covered by sales of tickets, passes and concessions. The remainder comes from the city’s general fund, which Warren said is hard to justify, given a looming decline in tax revenue on the horizon.

“We can’t afford to do that,” he said.

During an online meeting Wednesday evening, Mayor Bruce Reim said it is easier to close the pool than to lay off full-time employees.

“The pool is a loss leader,” Reim said. “We can keep employees on.”

During the Wednesday meeting, city officials also said they were considering keeping Splash Zone closed next summer as well, though that decision would not be made until later when they had a better understanding of the city’s financial situation.

Moses Lake and Quincy, however, are still looking at opening their aquatic parks this summer.

“Right now, we are doing everything we can to open,” said Tom Los, a recreation supervisor for Moses Lake and manager of the city’s Surf ‘n Slide water park. “We are hopeful we can open in Phase 3, probably in late June.”

Each phase in Inslee’s four-phase plan is a minimum of three weeks long, meaning that Phase 4 — full reopening of the state — won’t happen until mid-July at the earliest.

This means there is significant uncertainty as to whether Surf ‘n Slide will open at all this summer, Los said.

“We are dependent on the governor’s plans. Nothing is set in stone,” he said.

Los said the city is working closely with Grant County Health District, which has issued guidance to businesses seeking to reopen, to have a plan ready to keep employees and swimmers safe.

Normally, Surf ‘n Slide is open three months, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. However, Los said there has been some talk of extending the park’s season into September if it is allowed to open.

Los also said he has been interviewing staff via Zoom and hopes to start training 160 or so summer employees, five at a time, during Phase 2 of the state’s reopening.

“Things will be different,” he said. “This is our community, and we want to do this.”

Quincy City Administrator Pat Haley said Quincy is also taking a very cautious, wait-and-see approach.

“It is our hope that the Aquatic Center can be opened in June,” which is normally when usage starts to ramp up, Haley wrote in an email to the Columbia Basin Herald. “At this time, however, no opening has been approved. We are currently monitoring this restriction and the recreation director is discussing with other communities their plans.”

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at [email protected].