Grand Forks' two public outdoor pools attracted about 32,500 swimmers this year, the highest total since 1996.
Riverside Pool, with its first full summer of being open since 2004, had 17,500 swimmers, while Elks Pool had 15,000.
Riverside was closed for four consecutive summers before reopening for 18 days in 2009 after being renovated. The improvements included becoming heated.
Bill Palmiscno, the Park District's superintendent of recreation, credited the heated water as a big factor in the attendance gain at Riverside, which historically had lagged behind Elks.
"We saw a lot of young adults and middle school kids at Riverside this summer," he said. "It will be interesting to see if the trend continues next year.
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"Weather helped, too. We had the best July weather for a long time, and August was good, too."
Riverside has had an up-and-down history because it is prone to flooding. It was closed in 1997 and 1998 because of major flood damage and again from 2004 until late in 2009.
The two pools' attendance topped out at about 50,000 in a year in the 1990s when the East Grand Forks pool was shut down for repairs.
Also, there were 9,900 students in the school system in the mid-'90s, compared with 6,700 today.
Reach Bakken at (701) 780-1125; (800) 477-6572, ext. 125; or send e-mail to rbakken@gfherald.com .
