Elmhurst's Smalley Pool Closed This Summer

ELMHURST, IL — Elmhurst Park District plans to keep Smalley Pool closed this summer, while it is "cautiously optimistic" that it can reopen East End Pool and the spray ground at The Hub at Berens Park.

The decision to close Smalley was the result of the uncertainty of the pandemic combined with the "significant" tax subsidy required to run both pools, the district said.

“While we would have preferred to open both pools this summer, we didn’t feel it would be fiscally responsible to do so in the uncertain climate we’re in,” Jim Rogers, the district's executive director, said in a statement. “We’re cautiously optimistic that we’ll be able to open East End Pool and the spray ground this summer, but of course we will continue to monitor the positivity rates in our region and follow all Restore Illinois and Illinois Department of Public Health guidelines."

The district plans to open the spray ground May 29 and East End Pool on June 12. Both facilities will require advance reservations, the district said.

East End Pool is set to be open for morning swim from 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and open swim from noon to 7 p.m. daily. The number of reservations allowed will depend on capacity limits set forth by state guidelines.

East End Pool features a zero depth wading pool with tot slide, 25-yard lap swim lanes, one drop slide, one 1-meter diving board, one 3-meter diving board, a separate 12-foot deep diving well, two family changing areas, and an ADA-accessible aquatic lift.

The spray ground will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Reservations will be required.

Because of strict capacity limits, pool passes will not be sold this summer, and residents who purchased a pool pass last year will receive a household credit, according to the district.