Written By Scott Braden
There is no shortage of opportunities to swim in Carroll County. If you have a residential pool, you are all set for the season. Otherwise, there are plenty of places in the county to choose from. Here is a sampling:
Westminster
Westminster Municipal Pool
Starting this Memorial Day (and until Labor Day weekend), the Westminster Municipal Pool at 325 Royer Road in Westminster will be open from Memorial Day until June 13 on Saturday and Sunday. Beginning June 14, the pool is open from noon-7 p.m. Featuring 10 lifeguards on staff, the swim team that operates in the facility, the Westminster Stingrays, offers swim lessons.
A family membership in the pool starts at $200. Individual rates start at $128, and there is a $7 day rate for those who want to enjoy the pool for only a day. The pool also includes changing and showering facilities, and has rental space available for parties.
Westminster Riding Club
According to Barbara Norman, the club’s manager, the pool features showering and changing facilities, is predominantly family-oriented, but also welcomes individual (over age 21) and husband-and-wife memberships. The membership rates and dues range from $850 for families to $425 for individuals.
The annual membership year is from April 1 to March 31. Dues for the season must be paid on or before April 1 of the year.
Applications for membership can be obtained from Sandi Kelley, the incoming club manager, or from a current member. Applicants must obtain sponsorship through a current member who is in good standing with the club.
The club also offers Red Cross swimming lessons. Members pay $35 for two weeks, and nonmembers pay $55 for two weeks of lessons.
The club also hosts a swim team and holds a Junior Championship meet, in which all Carroll County swim teams compete.
Members may also reserve one of the club’s pavilions for private parties on weekdays. On certain Saturdays the pool stays open from noon to 10 p.m.. Regular hours from Memorial Day to Labor Day are noon to 9 p.m. The pool closes at 8 p.m. on school days.
Some of the social activities involving the pool this summer include Memorial and Labor Day picnics, teen nights, adult nights, and a campout on the grounds.
Sullivan Heights Swim Club Inc.
The pool, at 430 Geneva Drive, is open from noon to 8 p.m. Memorial Day to Labor Day, seven days a week.
Swimming lessons are available to members on two different weeks in the summer by Red Cross-certified instructors.
Hill Family Center Y
According to Kim Capone, swim director of the Hill Family Center Y at 1719 Sykesville Road in Westminster, it is one of 12 Y of Central Maryland centers in the state. The pool is open all year round. The monthly rates for swimming at the Y are: Adult $51/month. Senior $46/month. Family $79/month. Senior Family (at least one adult is 65 or over) $68/month. Young Adult (18 to 24) $38/month. Youth (under 18) $18/month.
Photo ID is required for all new membership sign-ups. The rates also require a one-time joining fee of $99 at the time of sign-up. The fee will be charged again if membership lapses more than 60 days.
Swimmers can also come in as a guest, and if not a member, pay only $10 and participate in an open or rec swim. Individuals can be a guest at the Y only three times, or they can join and use the pool at their leisure.
The Y offers some 17 core aquatic classes for children and adults, ranging in age from six months to teenage and beyond, as well as individual instruction.
“We also have adult water aerobics classes,” said Capone. “We probably have two to three water aerobics classes per day for adults. “We also have a Master’s Swim Team, which is made up of swimmers who were competitive when they were younger.
“We also have a children’s swim team with 130 kids. They are called the Hill Family Center Y Piranhas, and they are just finishing up their season now. We don’t have a summer swim team. A lot of our kids now go to outside teams like the Westminster Riding Club.
Capone also said that the Y has changing and showering facilities, and that they serve parties in the pool.
“We have birthday parties in the pool,” said Capone. “They are two-hour parties – an hour in the pool and an hour in the lobby.”
Hampstead
Cascade Lake
Patrick Flynn, co-owner of Cascade Lake, is ready for the 2014 season, which opens on the weekend of June 1, and stays open full time (except Mondays) starting on June 17. Fourteen minutes from Westminster, taking Gorsuch Road to 3000 Snydersburg Road in Hampstead, the lake is open from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. on weekends and holidays. (Swimming closes at 5:30 p.m. on weekdays and 6 p.m. on weekends.) There is also an ongoing Cascade Lake Water Camp through ABC Care, Inc.
The lake features a bathhouse for showers and changing. Cascade Lake is a smoke-free facility and pets are not permitted in the park.
The lake’s seasonal rates include: one person $150, two person family $250, three person family $325, four person family $385, each additional person $80. Memberships are not transferable.
The lake’s daily rates range from $12 for seniors to $15 for adults and children. Admission includes lake swimming, fishing, picnicking and use of the grounds. You can also rent a paddleboat at $5 to $7 for a half-hour.
Cascade Lake can accommodate larger family reunions, and attracts church outings and company outings. The lake accepts Visa and Mastercard.
Four Seasons Sports Complex
Located at 2710 Hampstead-Mexico Road in Hampstead – just 12 minutes from Westminster traveling on North Gorsuch Road – the Four Seasons Sports Complex and Fitness Center has two pools for its members; an eight-lane 25-meter lap pool and a recreational pool. Besides offering bathrooms and changing rooms for its swimmers, the facility also has other outdoor facilities such as a full basketball court, a horseshoe pit, a child play area, and unlimited miniature golf.
The pool is open from Memorial Day to Labor Day, Monday through Friday from 12 noon to 8 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday from 12 noon to 6 p.m., and holidays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Four Seasons’ seasonal swim rates are $200 for individuals, $300 for couples, and $450 for families.
Members can also take swimming lessons at Four Seasons. Weekly sessions are offered from June 16 to August 20. Lessons are overseen by trained/certified instructors and are conducted in a heated pool. Swimming lessons cost $95 per participant.
Four Seasons offers birthday parties at the pool. According to Jessica Dannettel, the complex’s director of operations, “pool parties can be done in a variety of ways. We offer all-inclusive parties where we provide the attendant, food, drinks and all paper products. The base package is $300 for up to 15 kids for 2 hours. Adults and the birthday child are not included in the guest count. There is a 15 percent discount for members.
“We also have rental options as well. Our rates are as low as $80/hour for access to the pool and pavilion for a small group of people. Rates go up to $175/hour for private access to the pool after hours. All rentals are customized based on the needs of the group and depending on other areas and spaces that you rent we start discounting our hourly rates.”
Manchester
Lineboro-Manchester Lions Club
According to Andy DeMario, Sr., the president of the Lineboro-Manchester Lions Club, the pool has been serving the Lineboro and Manchester communities since 1956. The club holds a swim party each year for the Special Olympics.
The pool, which is located at 3347 Victory Street in Manchester, is open noon to 7 p.m., seven days a week after school closes. Early registration fees for the pool are: annual early family membership for one’s immediate family costs $300; individual annual early registration is $150. Reduced registration fees apply until Memorial Day. After Memorial Day, the family annual registration fee is $350 and the individual annual registration is $175.
Daily prices for pool entrance are adults, $7, children 2-12 years $5 each. No swim: $2, day care under 2 years, free.
“We have private parties, said DeMario. “As far as the rates go, we try to work with the public. Last year, we gave away a number of memberships to the needy.”
Besides changing and shower facilities, the club also offers swimming lessons that usually start the last week in June, and there are four different times and age groups. Each class lasts for two weeks. Cost to be determined.
The pool also sponsors the North Carroll swim team, the Sea Lions. Most of the meets are on Saturday mornings and many practices are held at night.
Mount Airy
Nottingham Swim Club
Twenty-five minutes from Westminster taking Ridge Road to 1104 Kingsbridge Terrace in Mount Airy, the Nottingham Swim Club will be open from Saturday, May 24 to Monday, September 1 according to club spokesperson Pam Walter. Hours will be Monday – Thursday from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m., Friday – Sunday and Holidays from 11 a.m. – 9 p.m., and during Carroll County School Days from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
The club’s rates include an initial membership contribution of $1,000 (one-time fee – refundable) , and the annual fee is $475 per family
Featuring lifeguards from DRD Pool Management, the club also offers swimming lessons, has a swim team, the Nottingham Marlins, and bath house facilities: men’s and women’s rest rooms, changing facilities, and showers.
The club has three pools (baby pool, activity pool with mushroom fountain, and lap pool) also serves birthday parties for members, and teen nights sponsored by the Nottingham Marlins.
Sykesville
Freedom Swim Club
The Freedom Swim Club is a private, not-for-profit swim club tucked away in a wooded setting off Johnsville Road in Sykesville – just 18 minutes from Westminster, on Route 97.
The pool operates from Memorial Day through Labor Day weekends and is open to members only. Freedom Swim Club’s membership is made up of 300 families living in the South Carroll area. The club provides an active social program for the entire family with such activities as swim lessons, family fun day, movie nights, and adult-only socials including an annual crab feast.
Freedom Swim Club’s swim team, the Freedom Dolphins, competes in the Central Maryland Swim League.
The costs for membership is as follows: $25 application fee, $420 bond for new members, and a $50 initiation fee.
South Carroll Swim Club
The South Carroll Swim Club is located off Route 26 in Sykesville and offers its members three swimming pools, a waterslide, beach entry, and a mushroom sprinkler. It also boasts a large pool with swim lanes, and a baby pool with plenty of shade.
Families can also enjoy a sand volleyball court, basketball court, playground, pavilions, grills and a snack bar. Members can sign up for swim lessons, provided by qualified instructors.
Costs for the 2014 season are as follows: $535 dues, $850 bond for new members, and a $150 initiation fee.
