By Brittany Anderson
KYLE — The Kyle Parks and Recreation Department is looking for ways to incentivize employees, which would in turn offer upsides to the community, such as helping keep the all-new James Adkins Pool schedule a reality.
Kyle City Council members unanimously approved the Kyle Parks and Recreation Department to create an incentive program for its staff during its July 5 meeting.
During the June 7 council meeting, parks and recreation director Mariana Espinoza said that because of lifeguard shortages, the James Adkins Pool days and hours of operation would be cut to just Fridays and Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. As a result, the parks staff was directed to come up with a plan on how to open the pool six days a week for six hours a day.
“The people who use the pool, oftentimes, it's one of their only options for recreation,” Mayor Travis Mitchell said. “So, denying them, that seems like we’re taking away a quality of life for potentially hundreds and hundreds of our residents.”
During the July 5 meeting, Espinoza said that they have since been able to hire and train enough staff to open the pool four days a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays) for six hours a day (12 p.m. to 6 p.m.), which went into effect on July 12.
Mitchell said that with the new schedule, there are now at least more options for residents to be able to swim.
Even with new staff and pool days and hours, the parks department, along with the human resource department, still came up with more ideas to help incentivize employees and make this schedule — and other opportunities — possible.
Brooke Collins, the park department’s aquatics and athletics programmer, outlined six ideas to address this:
• Increase the hourly pay rate. Currently, lifeguards, the head lifeguard and the pool manager make $15 an hour once certified. The department suggested boosting pay up to $20 an hour for lifeguards, $22 an hour for the head lifeguard and $24 an hour for the pool manager.
• Use existing resources (personnel). Eligible employees would receive overtime based on a base rate of a lifeguard as $20 an hour and be paid time and a half, effectively receiving $30 an hour.
• Hire full-time and part-time assistants. The department would hire either two recreational leaders or two recreational specialists in order to assist staff with year-round activities with aquatics, athletics, special events and other programs. Additionally, college students would have the opportunity to intern with the department.
• Offer recruitment incentives. A $250 referral program would be implemented, where if an applicant is hired and completes the season, the staff member who made the referral would receive $250 on their check.
• Offer enticing incentives for employees. The department would provide a bi-weekly meal for seasonal employees, as well as weekly snacks.
• Use promotional marketing. Increase promotion for hiring and allow for representation of all ranges.
Recreation manager Aimee Garcia said that out of all of the ideas, the recruitment and employee incentive programs would offer the department the most traction.
“It not only gives back to the current employees, but also brings a bit more of a ‘wow factor’ of why to come work for the city,” Garcia said.
The unanimously approved incentive program will cost the city $19,500 and allow for staff to receive biweekly meals, weekly snacks and take part in the $250 referral program. The cost will be taken from the existing allotted seasonal budget, which has approximately $65,000 leftover.
Garcia said that the lifeguard shortage effectively saved the department money that can be used for the incentive program.
There may also be future discussion on hiring more employees, which Espinoza said would allow for more athletic programs such as flag football, softball leagues and volleyball leagues to be implemented, help full-time programmers during off-season, and even help the pool.
“As we go into budget season, I want the council to be aware that when we’re promoting the city and we’re trying to bring in more items for residents to do around the city, we should really consider the recommendations here,” Mayor Pro Tem Robert Rizo said. “[It’s] the reason I’m willing to wait until the budgets, because then we have a clear road. One of the things that residents ask me all the time is, ‘What can we do in the city?’ Having more programming for them would be key, and I think would really inspire more residents to come out and see who we are and what we’re about.”
In the meantime, for more information on the pool’s operation times, costs, programs, events and more, go to www.cityofkyle.com/recreation/aquatics-james-adkins-pool.
