HOUSTON – Nothing says summer like delighted kids running through a cool spray of water. For a lot of kids, that type of entertainment can only be found at one of Houston’s spray grounds.
"They want to be outside, it's never too hot for them," said Juan Perez, a father of three. "The kids have a lot of fun right here."
Knowing how important these spray grounds are to neighborhoods, we wanted to know why some were found with trash piled on drains, chunks of the surface gone, low water pressure and algae growing on equipment.
We started by looking at inspection reports generated by the city of Houston Health Department. Spray grounds, like pools, are supposed to be inspected once a year.
"There are different things we are concerned about at a splash pad versus a swimming pool," said Naomi Macias, a bureau chief with the Health Department.
Macias said that's because, if left unchecked, spray grounds can become breeding grounds for bacteria that can get kids sick.
A July 21 inspection report for Blueridge Park off the Beltway near S. Post Oak noted "trash," "pumps do not appear to be operating at full capacity," and “algae growth may be starting." Inspectors noted those issues were supposed to be corrected by July 28.
When KPRC visited the park on August 8, we found trash on the pad, low water pressure on some nozzles and thick rings of algae on some of the equipment.
"It's really sad to see," said Susana Cervantes. "It would be nice to see it clean and nice."
We found similar, persistent problems at other spray grounds like Burnett Bayland Park in southwest Houston and Aron Ledet Park in Northwest Houston.
"Who follows up to make sure that what you find is actually corrected?" asked Channel 2 Investigator Robert Arnold.
"It would be one of our inspectors who goes out to the location," Macias said.
However, Macias said the ultimate fix lies with the Parks and Recreation Department, which is charged with cleaning and maintaining spray grounds. Macias said all inspection reports generated by her office are sent to the Parks Department.
"They clean with brooms, bleach and pressure washers," said the Parks Department’s Michael Isermann, deputy director of facilities management and development.
Isermann said spray grounds are cleaned once a week and trash is picked up every three days. On that last point Isermann said he would really like the public’s help in making sure trash goes in the trash cans and not on the ground.
"Are you sure you're getting it all?" asked Arnold.
"I know our staff is doing everything they possibly can to ensure those pads are clean," Isermann said.
Isermann said these grounds are constantly used, rarely get a chance to dry out and algae can start to grow within a couple of days. However, we still had questions about the thick rings of algae seen growing on some equipment at Blueridge Park.
"Do you take anything apart to clean inside, things like that?" asked Arnold.
"Not typically," Isermann said.
"Actually taking things off, make sure the stuff isn't building up on the inside, has that been done?" asked Arnold.
"It's something we'll discuss," Isermann said.
Isermann did point out he only has six people to clean and maintain 24 spray grounds, 36 pools and 28 fountains. Parks used to have nine people for this work, but budget cuts in 2011 trimmed that number. Isermann said the number of spray grounds in Houston increased from 21 to 24 since 2011.
However, Isermann said he will immediately address the issues found by KPRC.
On Thursday, we received an update from the Parks Department showing these parks were again cleaned:
These Spray grounds were cleaned Tuesday:
- Aron Ledet - spray ground pad cleaned
- Burnett Bayland - spray ground pad cleaned
- Hackberry - spray ground pad cleaned
These spray grounds were cleaned Wednesday:
- Blueridge - spray ground pad cleaned, floor nozzles cleaned
- Nieto - spray ground pad cleaned
- Ervin Chew - spray ground pad cleaned
- Hidalgo - spray ground pad cleaned
- Dodson - spray ground pad cleaned
- Melrose - spray ground pad cleaned
- Herman Brown - spray ground pad cleaned
- Cullen - spray ground pad cleaned
- Wiley - spray ground pad cleaned
- Jaycee - spray ground pad cleaned
These spray grounds were cleaned Thursday:
- Montie Beach - spray ground pad cleaned
- Gutierrez - spray ground pad cleaned
- Stubner Airline - spray ground pad cleaned
- Edgewood - spray ground pad cleaned
- Tony Marron - spray ground pad cleaned
- Settegast - spray ground pad cleaned
These spray grounds are scheduled to be cleaned Friday:
- Guadalupe
- Herman
- Marian
- Melrose
- Palm Center
- TC Jester
- Westbury
- Shadylane
Isermann said the department will also be resurfacing Burnett Bayland Park and Hidalgo Park this fiscal year. He said other parks with missing pieces of surface will be fixed when more money is available in the budget. Isermann said the department also spends about $7,000 a year on replacing electronic parts at spray grounds due to vandalism.
Both officials from the Parks and Health departments said they will immediately address consumer complaints. Complaints can be filed through the city’s 311 system or at houstonconsumer.org.
