Dear Menlo Park City Council,
We are long time Menlo Park residents, having lived in the city for almost 30 years. We have been using the Burgess pool facility for as long as the renovated complex has been available and been managed by Tim Sheeper. We never used the previous pool as we didn't find it clean or well maintained. Prior to this, we used the Rinconada pool, which at that time was managed by the city of Palo Alto. While Rinconada was (and still is) a nice pool, back then it also suffered from mis-management and was frequently closed due to repairs.
We are life long swimmers and have used many public pools over the years. We have never had such a great experience as we have had with Burgess under the capable management of Tim Sheeper. The facility is clean, well maintained and staffed by attentive and courteous personnel - from the front desk to the lifeguards on the deck. The operations are the smoothest we've ever encountered, with rarely a disruption affecting access to the pool. Tim and his team also navigated the COVID shutdown (Burgess was one of the first pools in the area to re-open), demonstrating flexibility and resilience in a time of great uncertainty, to provide safe pool access to the public. During this time, Tim's programs lost a lot of members and, based on what I see at the pool now, are only just beginning to approach pre-pandemic numbers. They're coming back because of the high quality of the pool operations and programs.
We have used many of the programs that Tim Sheeper has offered, from swim lessons, to open family swims, to summer camps, to lap swims as well as masters. Our son started with lessons at Burgess and then participated in many summer camps as well as the junior lifeguard program. He then went on to be a camp counselor serving the summer camps. I have enjoyed being a member of the Menlo Masters program for as long as Tim has been coaching at Burgess. Don't let the term "Masters" fool you, it has very little to do with ability and everything to do with age and a desire to enjoy a structured workout with others. The Masters program includes adults ranging in age from their 20's up to their 80's, and most aren't doing it to compete but rather for fitness and for the camaraderie. While some Masters members competed as youths or in college, many did not, with some learning to swim as adults. It is also great to see the age range participating in the other programs. When I get out of the pool after a Masters workout, I see strong attendance in the water aerobics class and, now that we're in summer, the kids arriving for their summer camps.
Tim has done more than just provide a great pool environment and set of programs, he's also helped to build a strong community based on healthy lifestyles and fitness in a welcoming, accessible, safe and supportive environment. We have made many close friends over the years participating in Tim's programs.
We hope that we will be able to continue to enjoy Burgess under Tim Sheeper's management.
Regards,
Bob Hubbell
Dana Shields
Charlie Hubbell
1231 Woodland Avenue
Menlo Park, CA 94025
