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CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Derry Borough public pool to remain open despite lifeguard shortage
The public pool in Derry Borough will follow a modified schedule this summer amid a lifeguard shortage. During a meeting on Tuesday, Derry Borough Council voted to close the pool one day per week, saving the borough $500 per week. Residents and pool pass holders said they are ecstatic that the pool is not closing. "It's the best-kept secret," Derry resident Mary Repko said. "It's wonderful. It's families. People come with their kids, their grandkids, and it's a community because we get to know one another." Derry Borough Council said this is all thanks to two people who donated $3,500. "If you did not get that money from those two donors, where do you think you would be right now?" KDKA's Jennifer Borrasso asked. "We probably would be either looking at closing other days or maybe even closing the entire season," Derry Borough Council President Barbara Phillips said. "What people don't realize is how far that amount of money goes in a town like this, where our whole budget is $950,000," Derry Borough Council Member Nathan Bundy told those in attendance on Tuesday. The pool will be closed on Mondays, the weakest day for attendance, because the borough only has six lifeguards. But they are all getting a pay increase. Now, first-year lifeguards will make $10.50 per hour and more for second and third years. Lifeguards will also be reimbursed hundreds of dollars for their certifications or recertifications. The borough hopes all this will be enough to hire two to four more lifeguards. For the people who bought $250 pool passes, the borough is offering a full refund or a 10 percent discount on concessions if the pass is kept. "Food costs are up," Phillips said. "We have a full concession stand that a lot of other community pools don't have. We try to make the most of that." The council president added that the borough doesn't need the pool to make money. It just wants it break even, but it has lost nearly $40,000 over the last three years.
CBS News
24-06-2025
- General
- CBS News
Lifeguard shortage could threaten Derry Borough public pool's summer
A lifeguard shortage is complicating the summer schedule of the public pool in Derry Borough, leaders say. There is nothing worse on a hot day, with the sun beating down and temperatures well into the 90s, than seeing an oasis of cool water locked behind a fence that you can't get to. Derry Borough Council Member Nathan Bundy said no one wants the pool to be closed during the summer, but leaders just don't have enough lifeguards to monitor the pool and keep people safe. "Think about who our lifeguards are and their ages, and a lot of them are under 18 and a lot of them are also siblings," Bundy said. "So, what happened was, a bunch of family vacations happened all at the same time, and we did not have enough on reserve to be able to open safely." According to the American Lifeguard Association, there is a lifeguard shortage nationwide. Pay is cited as a factor, along with the rigors of getting certified. Bundy says certification is something the borough is working on. "We can't certify a lifeguard overnight," Bundy said. "But we are working with the American Red Cross, and we have some feelers out to local school districts and community pools about providing a lifeguard instructor and using our facilities for a lifeguard class." Lifeguards in Derry make $9 per hour, which is in keeping with several other pools in the area. Bundy said the borough would love a staff of 10 to keep the pool open seven days a week. Five lifeguards are usually needed at the pool on any day. But right now, the pool only has three to four lifeguards able to work, with two more hires set to start this weekend. But just as KDKA was recording interviews on Tuesday, two lifeguards resigned, and now the borough is calling into question whether or not it can reopen the pool at all this season. The council will be discussing the fate of the pool on July 1st at its next meeting. "I do hear all the complaints," Bundy said. "I understand them all. I would have loved to go to the pool myself, and we definitely feel the pain of the pass holders, as well that this service was expected. And we are planning some compensation for our pass holders in some different ways going forward this season and maybe for future seasons as well." Now, if you are a certified lifeguard and want to work for Derry, lifeguard jobs will be posted on the pool's Facebook page.
CBS News
12-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Derry Borough could become a pharmacy desert with impending Rite Aid closures
With its bankruptcy filing, Rite Aid will close 47 stores soon, including the locations at Pittsburgh International Airport, the Rite Aid on Atwood and Forbes in Oakland, and more. While some stores will close for good, all others will be sold off eventually. One Westmoreland County community wouldn't have a single pharmacy when its Rite Aid closes, making it a "pharmacy desert." A pharmacy desert, similar to a food desert, means that you must travel 10 or more miles to reach the nearest pharmacy in a rural area, and one or more miles in an urban community. Without the Rite Aid off Y Street in Derry, people must travel six miles to get their necessary medications. "It's devastating for our community," said Derry Borough Council Member Nathan Bundy. "All three communities are sort of in a line. Blairsville, Derry, and Latrobe are losing their pharmacies in town." Bundy knows this town and grew up with this pharmacy nearby. "It's been the same employees behind the counter for the pharmacy and the store for as long as I can remember," said Bundy. As a Derry Borough council member, Bundy worries more than about the job loss. "We have our senior citizen homes right over here. Another housing complex there, where this has been their only source, it's our only convenience store," said Bundy. It's the medical services out of reach or someone's capability. "It's going to adversely affect our aging population," said Bundy. "[Seniors] are not used to online ordering. They're not used to having to search to get stuff. They know everything is right here." Others in the community who might suffer from Rite Aid's closure might not have a mode of transportation to get to medical care outside of Rite Aid. "We had that service here, and a lot of people depended on that consultation," Bundy said. Bundy said he understands another pharmacy could buy Rite Aid, but it's a lapse of care he's not waiting to have happen. So, he and other council members have written to Rite Aid and federal and state leaders expressing the bigger issues pharmacies face in America. "It's very concerning that a pharmacy this busy, constantly busy, can't make money," said Bundy. The exact timing of when this Rite Aid will close is not known.
