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The Mountain Home Community Center is not pulling back pool access by choice. It is doing it because nearly every lifeguard it employs goes back to school this month.
Parks and Recreation Director Daniel Baxley told the Mountain Home Observer on Thursday that staffing is the only reason behind the changes taking effect Aug. 11, and that the limits come off as soon as he can hire.
“We’re not changing for any reason other than we’re losing all 70 of our lifeguards,” Baxley said.
Six guards are available to work daytime hours once school starts. Those six will cover the indoor pools.
Arkansas sets how many guards must be on deck based on how much water is open, and Baxley said the center cannot meet that standard across the whole facility with the staff it has.
“We need 22 guards on deck from 12 to 9 p.m. to operate the facility as it is right now,” he said. “So we have our limitations on hours, especially when you’re dealing with teenagers.”
The margin is thinner than the raw numbers suggest. Baxley said that if a guard leaves the chair to give first aid, another guard has to fill that chair, so the department cannot staff to the state minimum and still be covered.
Lifeguard positions remain open. Baxley said the department has recruited at other area high schools and is prioritizing applicants who can work a 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. shift, which is hard to fill part time.
Teenage employees also face legal limits on when they can work, and those tighten once school is in session. For 2027, Baxley said the department is weighing whether to add full-time guard positions rather than rely entirely on part-time staff.
He said hours could move again within weeks depending on hiring.
“This is a summer situation only,” Baxley said. “Hopefully the next summer it’s not.”
Residents holding 10-visit passes keep their access to the natatorium. Baxley said the center counts those visits as memberships, because the department collects information on pass holders, including any health concerns, the way it does for members.
Day pass buyers are not shut out entirely either. Baxley said someone with a day pass can use the natatorium when accompanied by a member, giving the example of a grandparent bringing grandchildren.
Silver Sneakers and Silver and Fit participants also keep natatorium access, because the center counts them as members.
What the change does close off is walk-up day pass use of the indoor pools, and Baxley tied that to how many people now hold access.
The center has signed up 7,009 primary members. Counting spouses and children, more than 13,000 people can walk in the door.
“We were expecting 2,500 members by this time. We’re at over seven thousand,” Baxley said. “So usage is just a lot higher than what we even anticipated.”
Baxley said the center is matching what comparable facilities do, keeping indoor pools for members and outdoor pools open to everyone.
Members who want a refund can ask for one, though Baxley said each request will be handled individually. He asked people to email him or the Parks and Recreation Department rather than go through the front desk.
He said there are legitimate grounds. He cited members who use the facility for a medical purpose the center can no longer serve, and members who have moved 45 minutes or more away.
Baxley acknowledged the flyer left people with more questions than answers.
He also said he understands the frustration from families whose schedules do not fit the new hours, including home-school families and those on four-day school calendars. He said the department has not ruled out adding something for those groups.
The outdoor pools stay open through the end of September, weather permitting, which runs past the Labor Day close typical of outdoor pools. Baxley said the city will not drain the outdoor pool over the winter, because other parks departments have told him draining and refilling is expensive.
