As the almost-50-year-old Hoffman Pool falls to the demolition crew, the Bellefontaine Joint Recreation District (BJRD) has much to do over the nine months it will take to see a new complex take its place.

Starting with a new recreation coordinator. Zoe (Price) Kennedy attended her first parks board meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 1, ready to get to work.

“I’m really excited to bring some fresh ideas to the parks department,” she said.

A former preschool teacher, she added, “Kids and sports are two of my interests, so both worlds collided for me here.”

Kennedy will also serve as the new pool manager following the retirement of Chris Watkins, who held the job for 16 years. Though she certainly has big shoes to fill, Kennedy has a long relationship with the Hoffman Pool herself. The place holds a legacy of memories for Kennedy and the rest of her family. In fact, her first job as a teenager was there, working as a lifeguard and assistant manager.

A 2022 graduate from Ohio Wesleyan University, Kennedy earned a bachelor’s degree in inclusive elementary education and competed on the track and field team. She also has a master’s in early childhood education.

She married Jake Kennedy, a 2015 Bellefontaine High School graduate, earlier this summer.

AED Towers

The board discussed the addition of Automated External Defibrillator (AED) towers to six parks: Harmon, Myeerah, Ratleff, Southview, Oakland Square, Rutan and Blue Jacket.

These freestanding stations are set up to be highly visible and accessible in case of an emergency.

Though a tower and AED are almost two grand each, making six units come in at $24,000, Mary Rutan Hospital has committed to cover at least half the cost. When they meet again in November, Rick Reed, parks superintendent, said there’s a chance they’ll decide to donate more, if not all the funding, toward the purchase.

“We’re kind of waiting,” Reed said. “We agree there’s no reason to put them in now, so this is a next spring thing. Whenever we end up using one, we’ll say we can’t believe we ever considered not having them.”

BCS Levy

Jordan Reser, Bellefontaine councilmember, told the board he’d been at the Bellefontaine City School levy committee meeting earlier, and had come to the BJRD meeting with a request—to place double-sided signs supporting the levy at Blue Jacket and, possibly, Rutan parks.

While the board agreed to approve the measure in order to have the signage taken care of before early voting begins in October, they stated moving forward would be contingent on whether it’s OK’d by legal counsel.

Reed also recommended placing a sign at Harmon Park as it’s on a main road and would be more visible.

According to Reser, the 1 percent levy will be on the November ballot and comes out of earned income only. The funding will go toward daily operating expenses at Bellefontaine City Schools.

Other board news:

• Basketball registration is now underway through November. Little Dribblers will have teams for kindergarten/first grade as an introduction to the sport along with a rec league for second- and third-graders. Fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders will play on the Miami Valley (travel) League (tryout required). The Hillaker YMCA will host the coed basketball program.

• Tackle football and soccer games have already started, though the latter has been “really beat up with cancellations,” Reed said. The excessive rain and flooding at Southview Park has been the main reason. Reed added they’re “willing to add a week or so, even two weeks if we need to make sure they’re getting enough in.”

• This summer, the department started an adult rec softball program with four teams. “I didn’t hear a curse word, and there certainly weren’t any disputes. Everyone had a good time,” he said.
“I think adult rec is something we can continue to pursue,” Reed continued. “I don’t think it’s ever going to be back to what it was 40 years ago, but I think there’s a niche there.”

• The fence is up at Hoffman Pool as the demolition began last week. (See Nita Wilkinson’s article) In the meantime, the project meant changes to the adjacent Frisbee golf course, specifically taking it from 20 holes to the standard 18.
Still, Reed said, “Everything’s good. Everyone’s happy.” He even heard from the course organizers that they’ve “never been happier out here with what’s going on at this golf course.”

• Regarding the splash pad at Harmon Park, Reed said the plan was to leave the water on at least through Labor Day, then play it by ear. However, on Sept. 3, the department announced on their Facebook page the last splash pad day will now be Sunday, Sept. 20, as the manufacturer is coming the following week “to make some adjustments and train our staff on the yearly winterization process.”

• Reed became aware that they’re “woefully out of date, way out” as it’s been 10 to 12 years since they’d invested in new fire extinguishers for the parks. With that in mind, they spent about $1,000 for 10 new ones.

The next BJRD meeting is 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 6. ■