Summer 2018 Hometown Messenger

BY THE NUMBERS ... 5

"The building and surroundings may have changed over the years, but the fun and excitement of a visit to SandVenture on a hot summer day hasn’t," Dvorak said. Kim Tieben began working at the swimming pool in 1979. "It was a great summer job, and I enjoyed lifeguarding, teaching swimming lessons, managing the staff and over seeing the day-to-day operations," said Tieben, who worked at the pool through the mid- 1990s. "To this day, I am still friends with many of who I worked with." In 1985, the City Council authorized the construction of a 300-foot water slide for $150,000. The twisty, blue water slide required special admission. "On a good day, we could have 300 to 400 people throughout the day," Tieben recalls. "Even on the coldest days we would have our 'regulars' show up, and if we ended up closing [early], we always felt bad about sending them home." In the late 1990s, the city updated the pool pumps and installed new lining and sand. Two drop slides were also added near the diving well. RENOVATIONS IN 2006-08 In 2006-07, the city gave the facility a $1.7 million makeover. Among the renovations was a new 3,900-square-foot

Feet at deepest part of pool

ABOUT SANDVENTURE Open: June 4-Aug. 19 Hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Location: 1101 Adams St. S. Admission: $5-7; twilight prices after 5 p.m. Memberships: Individual and family season passes are available for purchase at the Community Center. 12 Number of swimming ponds in Minnesota 300 Feet tall water slide 43,560 Square-feet of surface area 900,000 Approximate gallons of pool water

Above, the Splish Splash water slide was constructed in 1985. Below, the slide was replaced in 2008.

support building to replace the aging bathhouse. The current building houses a concession stand, family changing rooms, men’s and women’s locker rooms, staff storage and support areas. Other improvements included new picnic tables, new diving board, a fabric covered pavilion area, concrete pathway with colored concrete blocks, sand-play equipment and shade structures to block the filtration equipment from UV rays. Most notably, the City Council changed the name to SandVenture Aquatic Park to be more fun and reflect the sand-bottom pool element of the aquatic center.

Right, kids cool off at the Shakopee Municipal Pool in July 1987.

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Happy Birthday Celebration | 1-4 p.m. Saturday, June 30 Cake, games and DJ will add to the excitement of the day. Half-off memberships and $2 admission all day. SandVenture Aquatic Park is celebrating the big 5-0 this year!

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