GREEN COVE SPRINGS – After several days of relentless rain, Saturday morning greeted Green Cove Springs residents with sunny skies and sweltering temperatures as they gathered for the dedication of the new iteration of the historic Spring Park Pool.

The event brought out City of Green Cove Springs staff members and the city’s five council members. In addition, members of the Clay County Board of County Commissioners, some county-level elected officials and three state legislators were also in attendance.

Sen. Rob Bradley, an advocate for state-level funding of the project in Tallahassee, reminisced at the podium, remembering his upbringing in Green Cove just down the street from the pool.

“Before Disney World, people came to Florida for the springs,” Bradley said. He hopes that this new pool will bring back at least some of that spring tourism.

The event featured several speeches by those who helped bring the dream of a renovated pool to reality. Green Cove Springs Mayor Mitch Timberlake gifted a key to the city to Green Cove native and two-time Olympic gold medal winning swimmer Caeleb Dressel, currently swimming at the University of Florida.

“I’m always going to say I’m from Green Cove,” Dressel said after being handed the key. “This means more to me than you’ll probably ever know, it’s the key to my favorite place.”

After the sit-down ceremony, dignitaries lined up poolside, stretched a length of red ribbon, and grabbed a pair of big scissors to officially dedicate the pool. The facility actually opened June 8 with regular hours so the council could get the pool open as soon as possible, but the ceremony was set based on the schedules of featured guests.

After the ribbon was cut, Dressel changed into a swimsuit and goggles to swim the “ceremonial first lap” and to take on anyone who would challenge him to a race.

The first challenger came from eager council member Steven Kelley, who donned patriotic swim shorts and eagerly took a place beside Dressel, a situation that would cause the world’s best swimmers pause, but Kelley showed no signs of fear.

Following a countdown, Kelley dove into the pool, and after a short head-start in which Kelley made it more than halfway across the pool Dressel dove in. In one smooth motion, he took the lead, casually paddling to the wall at least ten seconds before Kelley finished the lap. There was no contest, but the two shook hands in a gesture of good sportsmanship. Kelley will need some practice in the new pool before attempting a rematch with the Olympian.

The pool is open six days a week, Tuesday through Sunday, from 11 a.m.-7 p.m., with the facility closed on Mondays for cleaning. In addition to the pool, the city has also added a splash pad feature outside the gates that will be accessible to all park visitors who can turn on the water feature with the push of a button between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., seven days a week.

Rates for entry are set at $4 for adults, $2 for children, and $3 for active military and senior citizens 65 and older. At Tuesday night’s council meeting, council members voted to set summer passes at a 75% discount for individual passes, with those being $84 for adults, $42 for children, and $63 for senior citizens and active military. They will also offer a pass for a family of no more than five people at a flat rate of $200.

“For the first summer, 75% off is a good price,” Councilwoman Pam Lewis said to start off the Tuesday’s discussion of rates for summer passes.

The council considered all options, eventually agreeing that a 75% discount was appropriate, agreeing with Van Royal that “it’ll encourage people to be here.”

Pool rental has been made available in two-hour increments for $200, in addition to a $75 cleaning deposit that is fully refundable. The council also set rates for renting the upstairs pavilion at the pool, with those being $400 for a five-hour block, including a $250 cleaning deposit that will be fully refundable. Rentals for both are currently kept within the Spring Park hours of operation which is listed as sunrise to sunset.