Here’s photos were taken of the “closed” Crystal Lake beach on Saturday morning at about 11 a.m.
Here’s what a ‘closed’ Crystal Lake looked like Saturday
by village14 | Jun 20, 2020 | Crystal Lake | 37 comments
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More than anything else, I believe we need to follow the science right now. And if the science says Crystal Lake should be closed for the summer, then I accept that.
But here’s what we don’t get when we close but this happens:
1. No lifeguards, no first aid station.
2. No deep water swim tests for kids.
3. No bathrooms (which makes on wonder exactly where folks might be ‘going.”)
4. I’m pretty sure that aerator thing that helps circulate the lake water is not running. (Not positive, maybe I just didn’t see it.)
5. The bike rack in the parking lot has been moved to make room for more cars, but less bikes.
Welcome to the Crystal Lake Autonomous Zone.
If they opened it they could have enforced capacity limits at the beach area, too. Now it will get packed.
I’m taking the grandkids to the lake tomorrow. They are bringing the paddle boards. No masks. Fun to be had.
Agreed. people are going to swim all around the lake- might as well make it as safe as possible. Sunbathing in proximity might pose the biggest danger, more than possible drownings and such.
@Greg,
You are correct about the aerator; it is intended to improve water quality through circulation. I doubt that it is on.
Hopefully parents will keep a close eye on their kids. Two of my kids were life guards there for years and too often parents would lose track of small children leading to a search. The water quality looks ok now, but with a string of hot days that can change quickly.
And hopefully folks will clean up after themselves as the guards won’t be doing the daily clean and sand raking among other tasks.
My take (in the late afternoon) that everybody was well behaved, polite, and friendly and trying to maintain distances. It was really very pleasant.
That being said, we really missed the great lifeguards, front desk staff, and Carol!
Thanks to the utter lack of opportunities for kids, mine have been swimming at Crystal Lake for over a month. From what I’ve seen, most of the people there have been doing their best distance between groups.
The mayor could have tried to open the Crystal Lake beach and Gath Pool with rules, but that isn’t how the city chose to handle the situation. Now underemployed kids without camp or other activities are going to fill their days with what is left.
It would be nice if the city would at least do what they can to keep it clean.
So…..what is the Administration’s response? Closed and we’re not going to do anything about it? Closed and we’re not going to at least make sure people are safe and it is kept up? Open it – because – well, people are ignoring the rules, anyway, so we should at least keep it safe and clean….?
Those swimming at the lake are essentially saying one of the following:
(1) Their assessment of the health risks is superior to the experts at the Newton HHS department.
(2) Their leisure is more important than a decision made to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
I’m sure the City’s decision to close the lake is debatable, and Greg provides a good analysis in his comment. I’m also sure that the City considered all of those things before they made their decision. Residents are still free to have this debate on this website, with elected officials, or elsewhere.
However, I’m shocked that residents who have chosen to break the rules are trying to justify themselves by blaming the City?? I understand people breaking the rules is inevitable and a policy consideration for the City, but people think they get to knowingly break the rules and then think it’s their place to complain about the rules??
The lake is not a supermarket or doctor’s office. No one has to go to the lake.* Anyone justifying going to the lake by saying the City made a bad decision, or saying that your kids had to go to the lake because of “the utter lack of opportunities,” is being selfish and disrespectful to all of us who are following the rules to prevent the spread of COVID-19. They are also being bad role models to their children and friends by normalizing a culture of not following public health guidance, which could cause others to take other risks.
*Note: I’m sure there are residents for whom swimming or aerobic exercise is a health imperative. This is an important, but separate issue which likely doesn’t apply to the large majority of people at the lake today.
Crystal Lake is such a wonderful resource and I have always felt that it was a shame that the city doesn’t provide for better access for a wider window of the season. Welleseley has managed to make Morse Pond open to residents so why can’t Newton?
That said it is deeply disturbing to see parents flaunting the rules with their children. Are they all hopping the fence? What a terrible message they are sending. And why is the city turning a blind eye?
Better that residents lobby the city to open it up If there isn’t the money to operate it, add a premium for this season. I am sure people will happily pay it
They were “protesting”… so its totally fine
Or get volunteers to staff it!
It’s not that people think that they know more than the Newton HHS. I’d argue that the decision not to open the beach at crystal lake and the gath pool seems at odds with guidance from the state and other choices the city has made.
What make me think that?
1. The state has said it is ok to open pools and beaches with restrictions.
2. The City is allowing all manner of business to operate within the rules set forth by the state.
3. The City made the decision to close the beach for the entire summer despite the real possibility that we will be in phase 3 within 2 weeks.
Am I breaking rules and blaming the city? I guess I’d say no. I don’t feel like I’m breaking any rules (other than swimming outside of the ropes, which people have always done in crystal lake). I am blaming the city for working hard for businesses and doing next to nothing for kids and their families.
I think Michael hits the nail on the head, but just to reaffirm:
1. Newton’s health department has nothing to gain from saying that you should not go to Crystal Lake other than to stem the outbreak of COVID
2. If Newton’s health department is saying it’s a health risk and therefore banning it, which they are able to do within the scope of Baker’s decree, you are breaking the law
3. If you are intentionally breaking the law around COVID, you are endangering others and should not then critique others for violating health recommendations for personal pleasure (as we often do to younger people and people in Republican states)
Please let the Italians, French, Spanish etc. know about a “utter lack of opportunities” under social distancing — much of the world has undergone far stricter lockdowns with only a fraction of the complains that we have in the U.S.
I may be wrong abut this, but I don’t think the Newton Health Department has ruled on Crystal Lake. I think the P&R&C decision was that it was impossible to open the lake under normal circumstances and cover the costs, given that full staffing would be required with what would be a reduced the number of guests in the facility at any given time. Ditto for Gath Pool.
I don’t think most people are using the lake in a manner that violates the social distancing guidelines of the city or state. As I noted above, I see the vast majority of people adhering to those guidelines. The exception are the clumps of mainly teenagers who sit on the grass in small groups or sit on floats in small groups–which is what they seem to do all over town. But even those teenagers have been quite good about avoiding other families and individuals.
Folks,
Opening the lake and Gath Pool by Parks & Rec doesn’t happen overnight. All the guards need to be certified in advance and those certifications only last for 2 years. Hence – every year a lot of staffers undergo re-certification programs which – with Covid-19 – were shut down. They also have to undergo background checks. I’m sure those are still being conducted but have no idea what the time frame is.
Once Carol gets all the necessary paperwork, the guards and staff undergo pre-season training, scheduling and there is always the pre-season set up – bringing in fresh sand, setting up the docks and chairs. I don’t think it is really fair to fault Parks & Rec for not going forward with these preliminary steps which would have happened starting in early March. And I also don’t think it is realistic to expect that to happen now.
The length of the season is short but again, that is in large part because many staffers leave for college in late August, and high school athletes have pre-season practice as well. (No surprise- a lot of the guards are swim team athletes.) I know that Parks & Rec does their best to keep going at the end of summer but as staff dwindles, so do the hours and there comes a time when the docks have to be pulled in and the closed for the season sign hung.
As for cleaning up after people when the area is closed for the season, well if you are going to swim at your own risk and trespass on property- both of which people are doing- I don’t think it’s reasonable to complain about the conditions if the city doesn’t clean up after you. It wasn’t set up for your use this year because … it is closed.
We’re in the midst of a heat wave. All public buildings that vulnerable populations could go to to cool down if they don’t have air conditioning are shut. We need to balance our fear of COVID with other threats to our health and well being.
IMO we should open the bathrooms and restart the aerator at a minimum.
All white people?
Lucia raises an excellent point, but is there no way for the City to open cooling centers?
Reopening the bath house means there must be maintenance- slippery wet floors are an obvious danger. Restarting the aerator means someone must be in attendance to keep people away from it! That’s typically one of the functions of the Life Guards.
@Lisap: Right, I don’t think the city can do a “half opening”. What they might be able to do is to open the gate and allow “at own risk” swimming, so that people don’t have to climb the fence. I’m really worried someone will get hurt doing that.
No, Spence T.
@Provocateur Spencer: I was there yesterday and the population of bathers is very diverse. Why wouldn’t it be?
I agree with Newtoner. Maybe this is the opportunity for the city to rethink how they run and staff it. It needs to be open June through September 10am-7pm. High School Seniors and Juniors don’t head off to college and can be certified as life guards.
There seem to be way more people taking advantage of this great resource that during a “normal summer”
Carol Stapleton at Parks&Rec has done a marvelous job over the years recruiting and training the staff, including making sure that kids get certified in a timely fashion. And truly, they do a spectacular job. I know at least one girl who saved a young child’s life by being attentive and noticing the situation during a busy beach day; and there are other examples of their attention to detail and their keen situational awareness.
Claire, while I agree that it would be lovely to have that long a season, there are both budgetary and logistical impediments. Not saying those are insurmountable, but I think we’d all need to hear from our new commissioner to understand more of the details to see if it’s possible.
@Claire-
High school juniors and seniors, of which there are usually many guards, do often have pre-season practice in late August. High school juniors and seniors in my experience of several years as a parent of 2 guards, are not head guards. Head guards – for which there are 2 at the lake to provide constant supervision of junior guards, are typically college students or post college. Then there are the swim instructors who require additional training and certification as water safety instructors.
Also, guards undergo approximately 6 weeks of training after they pass a qualifying swim test to enroll in the training. Not everyone is a strong enough swimmer for the training. At the end of training they have to pass a written exam and show their proficiency in the water – which includes bringing a heavy weight from the bottom of the deep end and using one arm to swim.
During the season, the guards undergo drills and in service training where they practice not only rescues but search and recovery. The first time these kids actually have to do a real search can be incredibly traumatic because they know that they be the person who finds a body under the docks or on the bottom of the lake. Thankfully that never happened while my kids were there, but they had their share of rescues of swimmers in distress. But I’ll never forget Carol Stapleton telling me straight up that when things go bad, and that has happened, some kids never, ever get over it.
Hopefully this will give some insight as to why the lake closes when the experienced, more mature guards head off to college.
I live near the lake and I have never seen it as busy as it was today. Cars were everywhere in the neighborhood and there was even a lane of cars parked in the middle of the parking lot. Cronins Cove always seems to be the more problematic area and today social distancing seemed to be lacking.
As far as the lake season I know there was a treatment to the water in May but typically the algae bloom happens mid to end of August. I just wish during a normal season the bathhouse area opened earlier on Saturday and Sundays instead of 1pm.
I realize that we are in a pandemic, and I don’t want a drowning at the lake, but the city must know that people are there. Morses pound is reservation only with no guards. There are many teens and college kids without jobs.
AND not everyone has a/c – can’t go to the mall, the movies or the library to cool down. It was HOT this weekend.
Lisap somehow Wellesley operates Morse pond 7 days a week 10am to 7pm. They have managed to figure it out
@claire is on to something. I’ll add Wellesley is superior to Newton in so many ways including: outdoor swimming, dining, education, parks, etc
It is almost impossible to accurately compare the two municipalities: very different demographics, revenue base, and demand for services between a city of 90K and a town of 24K.
That is a fair point Paul. But I feel as if there is a lack of imagination from the city. Why not skip all the programs this year and just offer open swimming. Why not look to a different population this year to staff the lake. Beach towns often use teachers. While the Y will hopefully open on the 29th, we could have hired some of their staff for the last month.
I agree, that we need some creative options for every one this summer. Toddlers, elementary school, middle, high school and college kids and adults. We are all missing our old summer routines, and having a lot of nothing isn’t good for anyone.
I think we could use the open spaces we have (parks, school grounds, library grounds, city hall grounds) for many things:
String concerts (no singing and no brass)
Piano concerts
movie nights
discussion groups
book clubs
yoga groups
Roller skating parking lots?
nature scavenger hunts?
Photography scavenger hunts (take photos of interesting doorways, flowers, etc)
Knitting groups
Drawing groups
Painting groups
All age groups need something.
Every thing is dependent on the weather. Bring your own mask, chair and tools
Reservation system is a must.
Social distancing outside is a must.
@Newton Mom. I couldn’t agree more. There are things we can do safely and we should do them.
@Claire-
I’m pretty sure that Wellesley only has one swimming spot to attend to and not both a lake and a pool. They struggled with whether to open and how. It appears they now have a reservation system but but not sure whether they are staffing with life guards. I think not but that may have changed.
As for YMCA guards, that would help but they would not be allowed to cover the lake unless they were waterfront certified. Protecting an open body of water requires different skills and additional training than needed to guard a crystal clear swimming pool.
The evening closing time at Crystal Lake changes as twilight gets earlier. That’s a safety decision, like closing the lake when water visibility declines. And no matter what time they close, it takes a bull horn to get some people out of there (lol). The guards are not allowed to leave until every last patron is gone and all patron cars are cleared from the parking lot. And no – the guards don’t get paid once their shift ends but they remain waiting for the slow pokes to get out of the bath house.
Perhaps with good strong lighting installed they could extend the hours though.
“ It is almost impossible to accurately compare the two municipalities: very different demographics, revenue base, and demand for services between a city of 90K and a town of 24K.”
According to the pro-density supporters, more people means more revenue so it should be a wash, right?
Wellesley also cunning in putting their large development…on Newton’s border at the intersection of routes 9 and 95.
Here is the detail on Morse Pond:
Residents only
Registration required to limit numbers
No lifeguards
How hard would that have been at Crystal Lake? I’m sure Wellesley typically has all sort of summer programming at the lake that they decided to forgo this year but found a way so that people could at least swim and enjoy the resource
https://wellesleyma.gov/353/Morses-Pond