Aug. 18, 2025

With JFK Pool closing, a reminder of public pools' civic value

Last week, JFK Pool at 114 Hickory St., one of six operational municipal pools in the city, was closed for the season during one of the hottest stretches of summer.

A woman hit a lifeguard with a flotation device after being asked repeatedly to leave the pool. She refused and assaulted the city employee on her way out and promised to come back. She did, with a large group, and city lifeguards and security stayed inside the JFK Recreation Center building until police came. They spent the rest of the day in the building and called police back to escort them to their cars, according to police reports obtained by The Buffalo News.

With lifeguards refusing to go back to work at JFK Pool, Mayor Christopher Scanlon a

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