Temperatures are already heating up out in the desert, and the Palm Desert Aquatic Center (part of the YMCA of the Desert) is out to make sure anyone with a hankering for the water has a place to dive in.
Since 2011, the Aquatic Center has offered a place for the Palm Desert community to experience lap swimming, water exercise, swim lessons, water polo clubs and more.
Manager David Keyes has been with the center since its inception. He says it’s a place for all ages.
“Our patrons range in age from six months to currently we’ve got a gentleman who’s 93 years old taking water exercise,” he told Desert Magazine.
Different times of the day and year are geared toward different age groups, Keyes explained.Their spring session is focused more on fitness, lessons and classes.
Early birds keen for a workout before the day starts will find the pools open early for lap swimming. For seniors looking to stay healthy, water exercise classes start at 9:30 am. Lunchtime offers more opportunities for fitness-oriented lap swimming before school gets out, which is when swim clubs, water polo and recreational swim teams hit the water. Those looking to learn will also find swim lessons available in the afternoon. On the weekends, recreational swimming is available.
When summer rolls around, the center offers plenty of fun for anyone looking to cool off — Keyes notes they chill their pools and keep them around a pleasant 81 degrees, no matter how hard the valley sun beats down.
Zero-depth entries in the recreational pools are designed with family fun in mind.
The center features a whole recreational zone, including slides and a splash playground with a water wheel. In addition, Keyes pointed out the center’s diving boards, which are open to the general public for recreational use — a rarity in California.
A few new installations, which Keyes is very excited about, are on the docket for summer this year.
“We just got a rock wall and a small zip line,” he said.
“We’re going to be installing a five-meter rock wall for the older kids,” he said. “You know, put a bell at the top and have them climbing up that rock wall. And then a small zip line that’s going to be going onto the pool deck.”
While kids flying into a pool on zip lines might sound fun or dangerous depending on your age, safety is a high priority for the aquatic center, according to Keyes. Anyone under the age of 18 using the deeper pools is required to take a swim test to demonstrate they are comfortable and confident in the water.
This community aquatic hub did not escape the pandemic unscathed. Over the past two years, the center has suffered the same difficulties many other businesses have faced including staffing struggles. Before COVID-19 hit, the center offered recreational swimming seven days a week and held events like Dive in Movies throughout the year.
Now, Keyes says the issue preventing them from getting those back underway is a lack of lifeguards.
“To have those types of events, we need more lifeguards, so we’re always pushing hiring,” he said. “Really the amount of staff we have dictates what we’re able to do because again it’s bodies of water — we look at it: it’s all about safety.”
Keyes notes a lot of the 16-22 year olds who would usually be interested in guarding for them have other priorities than a job after being isolated for two years. For anyone interested in certification, however, the center is an excellent option.
“We want to hire you, train you, and pay you,” Keyes said.
Over the years, many people who originally started as kids in swim lessons have taken advantage of the center’s program and gone on to guard for the center. Keyes tells of a guard who started as a kid back when the center first opened. He’s currently getting his recertification.
“He was swimming with the swim club and then when he came of age, we were looking for guards so he was hired as a lifeguard. He worked for us for a couple years, then went away to do some school, then came back and he’s guarding for us right now,” Keyes said. “He wants to recertify and guard for us again while he’s looking at where he wants to make his career choice.”
Keyes also takes pride in the fact that the center boosts the community’s number of residents trained to respond in emergency situations.
Despite the pandemic, the center is growing. Last year, it held the largest swim class in its operating history, according to Keyes.
The Palm Desert Aquatic Center focuses on providing a good experience to the community through cheerful staff.
“The location, size and the staff makes this facility,” Keyes said.
When the center reopened after restrictions lifted, people showered the team with baked goods because they were so thankful to see it back open, according to Keyes. And the gratitude trend hasn't stopped, he added.
