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Houston’s Parks Department said it is ready to open 34 out of its 37 pools this summer.
During the Parks Department’s May 15 budget workshop, Director Kenneth Allen said three pools will be down for maintenance reasons this summer.
“Two will hopefully come back online, and the third one will take a while, that’s Tidwell, because of renovations and reconstruction,” Allen said.
Why it matters
In 2024, the city had a lifeguard shortage, which led to fewer than two dozen of the city’s 37 pools opening for the summer.
This year, Allen said, the FY 2026-27 budget will offer salary increases for lifeguards.
“We dropped the incentives and increased the pay by $2 [an hour] with each classification,” Allen said during the meeting. "And it’s been a shot in the arm, so to speak, with recruitment.”
Allen added that the department is also hiring 15-year-olds, which has also helped with recruitment.
Allen said the department has taken a hands-on approach to recruiting, including attending job fairs and on-site processing.
“We have a lot more [lifeguards] in the queue, and we’re ready to open a lot more pools as a result.”
The grand opening
The department will roll out the pool openings beginning with 10 during the long Memorial Day weekend.
“We’ll start with 10 on Memorial Day weekend, and then the following weekend we’ll open more,” Allen said. “And as kids get out of school and they’re ready to work, we’ll have at least 34 pools open on a full-time schedule.”
One more thing
During the budget presentation, Allen presented the Parks Department’s proposed budget of $106.4 million.
The city will complete budget workshops May 19. The FY 2026-27 budget begins July 1.
