Spraygrounds open in Philadelphia as heatwave hits region
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Spraygrounds in Philadelphia opened Monday as a heatwave continues to impact the region.
City leaders celebrated the beginning of the Parks and Recreation's sprayground season Monday by opening 91 locations across the city.
Today Mayor Kenney greeted campers at Mander Playground in Strawberry Mansion, stressing the importance of having fun while also staying safe.
Kenney said while pools at parks will remain closed for the summer he's hoping they can open up next summer.
"We weren't sure on CDC guidelines on pools, how that would interact with people getting and being exposed to the virus," said Kenney, "Apparently that's not the case, but it's now too late for us to ramp up and to hire people, so I'm praying for next year we're able to open all of our pools."
Each sprayground will be open to the public from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m. on weekdays and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.
Safety guidelines will be a major focus due to coronavirus concerns.
You'll see signs posted at each location with guidelines that must be followed, including staying at least six feet away from others along with washing and sanitizing your hands.
Keep in mind that summer camps will be happening at some sprayground locations and that access may be limited at times. You can find more information on these restrictions on the city's website.
City employees will be on hand at some locations to remind families to follow health and safety guidelines while trying to beat the heat.
"This is a great way to bring fun to kids who have been pretty traumatized over the last few months, who have not had a lot of social or recreational outlets," said Kathryn Ott Lovell, commissioner of Philadelphia Parks and Rec.
Spraygrounds are limited to fifty people at a time, and almost all are staffed. City officials said at the end of the day Monday, parks and rec will evaluate how well everything went, and if they'll have to limit the amount of time families can spend, depending on crowd size.
Now that the city is in green phase, parks and rec has begun the process of reinstalling the nets on the basketball rims at over 150 sites across the city.
The rims are going back up starting Monday.
