By Kathryn Gentile
Hometown Weekly Correspondent
Medfield’s Hinkley Pond will soon be opening for the summer, but with a different schedule than you might expect. In the past, the pond has been open seven days a week from 11 AM to 6 PM, but this year, due to budget, staffing, and attendance concerns, the pond will no longer be open on weekends. However, hours will remain the same on weekdays and admission this year will be completely free. For Medfield residents looking to visit the pond, they can make a free account on the MyRec website and pay a visit to the second floor of UCC Church at 496 Main Street, Medfield to receive a fob that will allow them entrance to the pond.
“We noticed across the board, it’s not just weekends, it’s actually Monday through Sunday, we’ve seen [attendance] decline in the last three years… outside of camp,” said Katie Walper, director of Medfield Parks and Rec. Attendance has been on the decline for a few years now, with fewer and fewer swimmers coming outside of camp hours between 1-3:30 PM, during which they see about 150 campers swimming in the pond. Walper suspects there are a few reasons why attendance has been going down. Hinkley Pond is a smaller waterfront, and Walper suspects that families might instead choose to swim at Sharon or Natick Waterfront, which are bigger and give more of a “beach feel”. She also said that families are choosing to vacation more in the summer, and that Hinkley Pond isn’t a “destination spot”. Walper also reported an “across the board” decline in participation in parks and recreation activities, not just those at the waterfront. Rather than being unique to Hinkley Pond, these issues seem to be part of a larger problem.
Attendance isn’t the pond’s only problem. In order to run safely, the pond needs lifeguards on staff. While the Parks and Rec team is happy to train new lifeguards, they prefer to have a healthy mix of trainees and experienced lifeguards on staff every year. However, there is a shortage of these experienced candidates, both at Hinkley Pond and nationwide. There is also a budget issue at play. The pond currently runs at a significant deficit. As the pond’s popularity has declined, this has called into question whether it is worth it to keep it open at all. The future of Hinkley Pond is in limbo and the Medfield Parks and Rec team hopes that the changes they make this year are enough to keep the pond running for years to come.
In the meantime, families looking to visit Hinkley Pond have a lot to look forward to this summer. Alongside the free swim areas, Hinkley Pond has 25 meter swimming lanes available. They even host a swim team, called the Marlins, for ages 7-18. Registration for this swim team opens on May 1st and is free for high schoolers. Walper recommends coming between 4 and 6 PM, as those are the pond’s slowest times. “For people that are looking for more of a cozy atmosphere, it’s a great highlight,” Walper said. However, if you’re looking to visit a pond on the weekends this summer, you can check out the Sharon and Natick Waterfronts. Both waterfronts are open to non-residents, though they do require a paid pass, unlike Hinkley Pond.
Whether or not weekend hours will return at Hinkley Pond is still in question. As the changes put into place this year are tried and tested, the Medfield Parks and Rec team will have a lot of consideration to do about the future of the pond. For now, though, Walper said the team is “fairly confident” in the pond’s future. “We think it’s a beautiful place to be, we just hope people come to it.”
