(Photo via Google Maps).
The Wade Pool at Dwyer Memorial Park is all set for next swimming season in Cortland County, legislators said at a county highway committee meeting on Tuesday.
Committee chair Chris Newell (R-LD-11) said the county had fixed a leak at the pool that was a cause of concern earlier this year. Legislators voted in the summer to spend up to $60,000 to repair the leak.
The legislature had also approved back then the creation of three part-time wade pool attendant positions who would work less than 20 hours a week for a total of 90 days out of the year. The hourly wages for the positions were set at $15.20 an hour.
Newell said there have been some concerns about the qualifications for the job as an impediment to hire people. More specifically, Newell said, attendants need to have CPR training.
CPR certification for pool attendants costs on average anywhere between $100-$125 in central New York, according to the Red Cross website.
Charles Sudbrink, the county’s highway superintendent, said applicants can be reimbursed for the training, but only after they get the position.
“We don’t pay upfront for applicants,” he said.
Legislator Linda Jones (LD-9) said Wednesday asking for applicants to pay for the certification prior to applying for the job was not a realistic ask.
“Say you and I want to be a wade pool attendant,” she said. “We don’t have CPR certification. Are we going to apply not knowing whether we have the job? That's not realistic.”
Jones said she believes there is interest for the positions.
“There isn’t a problem with wade pool attendant applications,” she added. “There’s a problem with the process that we have in place.”
Jones said she would like to see CPR training offered for county employees beyond pool attendants.
“We should provide CPR training for employees that we think are in a position that maybe are going to use it or need it,” she added.
