It’s hard to believe that September is just a few days away. While the second Eddy County War of 2021 is being settled Friday evening, it seemed to be a good time to look back at a few highlights from some of our newer summer recreation activities.
The Carlsbad Water Park had a great summer. There were a few rainouts due to the weather, but that was to be expected. We added a number of Wednesday swims where we were open until 8 p.m. and had a large number of private party reservations over the summer. Thank you to all of our lifeguards and staff for all of their hard work, both at the water park and along the beach.
Special thanks to outgoing water park manager Brad Alpers, who was with us when the Carlsbad Water Park first opened several years ago and did a great job getting this facility off the ground. We wish Brad the very best.
The Carlsbad Water Park remains open on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. We plan to keep the park open on weekends for as long as we are able to this year, certainly past Labor Day weekend.
Our new beach volleyball courts were extremely popular throughout the summer. In addition to casual play, there were two volleyball tournaments held there this summer. Thank you for all of the donated work by Steven McCutcheon and the Carlsbad Office of the BLM. Thanks as well to our City crews for their hard work on this project. Pickleball league play remains active. Thanks again to Clint Cone with Sendero Midstream, Anthony Foreman with AR Foreman, and BnT Weed Control for their very generous donations that helped make this possible.
Of course, many of our existing facilities, such as the golf course, tennis course and disc golf course, remained busy throughout the summer as well.
Our summer concert series will also continue into September. Concerts are set for 7-9 p.m. at the new gazebo next to the Carlsbad Water Park. Cody Zane Wells will be performing this Saturday (Aug. 21) followed by Olga Dominguez and Sip Anaya on Aug. 28. On Sept. 4, back by popular demand, we’ll have a performance by “The River Bend” featuring Ethan Cole and Silas Clark. We don’t have a concert series performance scheduled for Sept. 11, but Stranded will be performing on the 10th in downtown Carlsbad. Finally, another talented musician with local roots, Charlie Ingraham, will be performing at the water park gazebo on Sept. 18. We’re keeping our water park open and our concerts going into September – we’re not willing to let go of summer just yet.
Last, but certainly not least, if you are reading this before Friday night’s home game – go Cavemen!
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway