Since the city pools won’t be open this summer, families are looking for their own pools. But they’re hard to come by. Jenny Cooper ordered one online in April. She called several times in May and ended up canceling her order. “They were backed up. They said it would be eight to 12 weeks before it even got to me,” Cooper said. She eventually found an above-ground pool on Ebay. “I’m so excited to have a pool in my back yard,” she said. “Right now, the supply of above-ground pools is zero anywhere in the country,” said Shane Johnson, owner of Phoenix Pools. Johnson said spring is usually her busy time of year. With COVID-19 keeping people at home, he said he had never seen such demand in his 13 years in business. “You’re betting on a 500% increase, it’s incredible,” he said. Johnson says they also run five times as fast as many estimates for in-ground pools. By summer is over, his team will have built around 40 pools to limit the number of projects due to insufficient materials. “We’re seeing bottlenecks in supplies from A to Z,” said Johnson. The extended security break for private pools is over. “We knew there would be restrictions and it would be difficult, but we worked on it,” said Maple Village County Club president Tim Sprakel. It is preparing to open Saturday with a capacity of 25%. In addition to new paint on the pool deck, there are bright orange “xs” marking the point for a social distance of 6 feet. Members must also log in to the pool for a period of three hours. The crews will clean between each group. “We have a lot of space with sand volleyball courts, the picnic area and the tennis courts. We are turning into a space where people can spread out,” said Sprakel. Cooper said with the public swimming pool since her neighborhood is closed for the summer, she expects her garden to be a popular spot. “This is something to keep the kids active,” she said. Johnson said he already has a pool waiting list for 2021.
OMAHA, Neb .–
Since the city pools won’t be open this summer, families are looking for their own pools. But they’re hard to come by.
Jenny Cooper ordered one online in April. She called several times in May and ended up canceling her order.
“They were backed up. They said it would be eight to 12 weeks before it even reached me,” Cooper said.
She eventually found an above-ground pool on Ebay.
“I’m so excited to have a pool in my back yard,” she said.
“Right now, the supply of above-ground pools is zero anywhere in the country,” said Shane Johnson, owner of Phoenix Pools.
Johnson said spring is usually her busy time of year. With COVID-19 keeping people at home, he said he had never seen such demand in his 13 years in business.
“You’re betting on a 500% increase, it’s incredible,” he said.
Johnson says they also make five times as many estimates for in-ground pools. By summer is over, his team will have built around 40 pools to limit the number of projects due to insufficient materials.
“We’re seeing bottlenecks in supplies from A to Z,” said Johnson.
The extended security break for private pools is over.
“We knew there would be restrictions and it would be difficult, but we worked on it,” said Tim Sprakel, president of the Maple Village County Club.
It will open on Saturday with 25% capacity.
Along with new paint on the pool deck, there are bright orange “x” s that mark the point for 6 feet of social distance. Members are also required to log in to the pool for a period of three hours. The crews will clean up between each group.
“We have a lot of space with sand volleyball courts, the picnic area and the tennis courts. We are turning into a space in which people can spread out,” said Sprakel.
Cooper said that since the public swimming pool in her neighborhood is closed for the summer, she expects her garden to be a popular spot.
“This is something to keep the kids active,” she said.
Johnson said he already has a pool waiting list for 2021.
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