Summer Solstice 2019

Today, Friday June 21, 2019, is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. Days will now start getting shorter.

On Wednesday the LaRue Pool celebrated its 70th birthday. The celebration was delayed a week because of weather. The actual 70th anniversary of the opening of the pool, on the 12th, had storms. The 19th had decent weather and the rain held off until about 4:00 when people were leaving. The pool had over 130 people signed in on their ledger and there were about 40 more checked in with passes, but some people may have been counted twice. Still, the number of people in the pool on Wednesday may have been larger than any attendance in several years.

The baby pool was open and full of little kids having fun.

 The day featured an admission rate of only $1.00, free cupcakes to celebrate the birthday, ice-cream sandwiches provided by Alliance Bank, popcorn from ConAgra, and a piñata. During the first break the people attending sang "Happy Birthday" to the pool.

 There are a lot more pictures on the Rensselaer Parks Facebook page.

On Friday Healthy Haven, a smoothie and protean drink bar, had its ribbon cutting.

 A sign in the door offered a $1.00 discount.

 Leaving Healthy Haven, I peeked inside the Horton Building to see what was happening and received a tour. Below is the current state of the back end of the building. The old walls have been torn out and new partitions are being put up. This part of the building should be finished in August.

 Below you can see the front part of the building. the ceiling has been removed but the old floor is still in place. It will be removed and replaced with a new wooden floor.

 Below is a picture of the rafters.

 There are three apartments upstairs. This is a picture of the current state of the back apartment. It is being renovated so that it can be used as either a one or two bedroom apartment. The middle apartment is bigger and the work on it is much further along.

 This week one lane of the highway was closed as the City installed new water lines. Each apartment and both the front and back of the downstairs will have its own water supply and pay a separate water bill. The water pressure for each unit should be much improved.

On July 1 the dog park on Bunkum Road will have its grand opening. The park has two sections, one for small dogs and one for large dogs. The plan is that eventually people who use it will pay a fee and there are combination locks on the gates, which can now be bypassed.

 Below is a picture looking from the shelter to the road. Notice the two water fountains. The running water is near ground level. I suppose some little kids would like that design.

 Work on cleaning one of the City's water wells is underway. In April the City Council approved cleaning this well.

 The old WRIN building on McKinley is being renovated into apartments. Since I have been blogging, it has been a church, a Mexican grocery, something called the Bargain Bin, and a business selling carpeting.

Further south on McKinley is the new location for the coin operated laundry that had been on Gasper Drive. It opens on the 22nd.

Now that we have passed the solstice, maybe we will get some warmer weather.