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Recreation Director’s Report Now that August has arrived things have really started to heat up around the Recreation Area. The temperatures have soared through the 90’s the last few days and the Swim Area has been busy with people trying to keep cool. These are days when the Swim Area sign that I putout at the intersection of Furnace Rd. & US RT 7everyday definitely attracts folks the Recreation Area. Picture this, an out of town family is driving along US RT 7, the mom is boiling its so hot, and the dad is sweating like a turkey on Thanksgiving, and the kids aren’t shy about letting everyone know just how miserable they are in backseat with their yelling & screaming because it’s only 96 degrees in the shade. Just then the swim sign appears, like an oasis in the desert an unexplained force takes over and less than 5 minutes later everyone finds themselves splashing & swimming, having a great time at the Recreation Area. Not a bad image at all, is it? Like last summer the Recreation Area continues to be busy on the daily basis even though the weather hasn’t been as cooperative as it was last year. This year we’ve been dealing with afternoon showers that come through and disrupts an otherwise great beach day. 52 Season Passes for the Recreation Area have been sold for 2006, which compares with 60 in 2005 and 32 passes in 2004. The wet & cold spring didn’t get residents thinking about purchasing the passes early and when the weather finally did break in early July it might have been too late in the season for families to justify buying a pass. However revenue from the Picnic Pavilion Rentals has doubled in the past year alone. Like last summer all but one or two weekend days have been reserved all season long, the difference has been that we have had many more week day parties scheduled than in the past. In 2006 the pavilion has been a popular choice for kid birthday parties. Parents like the fact they can have, regardless of weather in most cases, a party outside where the kids have plenty of things to do, with very little clean up all for a very reasonable price. By the end of the season there will have been over 60 different groups that used the pavilion which works out to approximately 4600 visitors. Another important piece of information to mention is that 26 Tennis Passes have been sold so far for the 2006 season. 24 passes were sold in 2005 and just 14 were sold in 2004. The 2006 Red Cross Swim Program has been going great. For the second year in a row the Recreation Department has offered three 2-week sessions of lessons. Last year the Recreation Department made the transition from offering just two 3-week swim sessions to offering three 2-week sessions. A main reason for the change was that I wanted to increase usage at the Swim Area during the month August, which is always our the slowest of the season in regards to daily usage, Day Camp is over by this time and it used to be our swim lessons would be finished also so our mid-week crowd would be down close to non-existent. Normally our busiest times are when swim lessons are happening, families are already at the Swim Area and they’re more likely to decide to stay longer at Recreation Area on any given day depending on the weather. There were 38 kids registered in the first session of lessons (51-2005/41-2004), and in the second session we had 30 registered (36-2005/31-2004) kids, and currently now in session three there are 34 (30-2005) taking swim lessons. Total swim lesson participation numbers are 102 in 2006, 117 in 2005, & 72 in 2004. The added session has certainly increased the number individuals the Recreation Area services during any one summer. On Saturday, August 5, 2006 at 8:30 pm the Recreation Department and Cinema Sid’s Traveling Film Festival (Anita & Bruce Paynter of 2990 US RT 7, Pittsford) sponsored an FREE outdoor screening of “Charlotte’s Web” at the Recreation Area. Approximately 40 people of various ages were in attendance to enjoy this film. This was the first time that this Recreation Director had ever tried an outdoor movie, and things went rather well. Mr. & Mrs. Paynter supplied the equipment needed such as the 16’x16’ screen, the 16mm projectors, and speakers, along with the expertise to show the film in a professional manner. Meanwhile the Recreation Department rented the film, advertised the event, & hosted the program. To add to one’s experience the concession stand was open selling popcorn, soda, fried bread dough, & candy. The weather was perfect for an outdoor screening of a movie clear, cool, and the moon was 82% of the moon’s visible disk was illuminated. Everyone that I’ve spoke who went had a very nice experience.
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