Conrad pool briefly closes due to COVID before reopening Monday

CONRAD- The Conrad Family Aquatic Center was closed for four days after an employee tested positive for COVID-19 last week, but as of Monday, it had officially been deep-cleaned and reopened.

According to Mayor Jeff Martin, the employee hadn’t been at the pool for several days before testing positive and had “very little if any” opportunity of spreading it, but the city took decisive action anyway out of an abundance of caution. Martin and CFAC Manager Gina Dinsmore worked closely with Grundy County Public Health (GCPH) and the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) before making the decision to reopen.

“(Health officials) were very responsive and very helpful. If you pay attention to the news and things, we’re not the only ones (that this is happening to),” Martin said. “We want to have an outlet for the kids and have a place they can enjoy themselves safely especially on these hot days, and as long as we can do that, I think we’re going to continue.”

Martin also praised Dinsmore for running a “really good operation up there” and expressed hope that the facility will be able to remain open for the rest of the summer.

“If there was any question, I wouldn’t be as comfortable with it, but I am comfortable with it,” Martin said.

GCPH Program Coordinator Katie Thornton-Lang told The Grundy Register that she’s been in touch with city leaders and managers across the county with regards to swimming pools and noted that Martin was quick to reach out with questions and concerns.

“We just kind of talked through what his concerns were, talked through the situation and worked it out together,” Thornton-Lang said. “There’s no black and white answer for this.”