Eureka’s Parks and Recreation Department has a new leader, and the first thing she had to deal with was a
COVID-19 exposure at the Timbers of Eureka recreation center.
The Timbers, 1 Coffey Park Lane, was closed on Tuesday after it was discovered a pickleball player had tested positive for the virus.
The Parks Department later announced it planned to reopen the facility on Wednesday.
However, the department said in a Facebook post the Timbers will not have pickleball courts available until Oct. 21.
City Administrator Craig Sabo said Missy Myers resigned as the Parks Department director on Oct. 5. He said Kristin Christenson, 37, of Wildwood, who had been the department’s superintendent, has been promoted to director.
“It really hasn’t been too bad (on Tuesday); we really didn’t have many members in the facility at the time (the Timbers was closed),” said Christenson, who assumed her new role on Tuesday.
Timbers
Christenson said the Timbers was notified at about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday that a man who had been in the facility on Monday had tested positive for COVID-19.
She said the Timbers closed shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday.
Christenson said she was told the man was asymptomatic, and he had played pickleball between about noon and 2:30 p.m. Monday.
She said after the Timbers closed, the staff started the cleaning process.
“We have the tools here to accomplish that,” she said. “We are cleaning the whole facility. We are focusing a lot of our energy on the gymnasium, because that’s where he was the majority of his time while in the facility.”
She said everything was wiped down, then a fogging machine was used to sanitize the facility.
Christenson said the St. Louis County Department of Public Health was contacted and worked with the Parks Department.
Late Tuesday afternoon, the Parks Department announced on its Facebook page that the facility would reopen at 7 a.m. Wednesday.
The post said the staff “spent the afternoon disinfecting the fitness equipment and any high-touch surfaces throughout the building. A disinfecting fog has been sprayed throughout the entire facility. Due to the positive case from a member who played pickleball, that program will be cancelled through Wednesday, Oct. 21.”
The Timbers was closed from March 15 to July 20 because of concerns about the spread of COVID-19. The facility’s pool is not open.
Christenson said since the facility reopened in July, visitors have been required to wear masks while entering and moving around the facility but not while exercising.
“We do temperature checks and
COVID-19 screenings for anyone who enters the facility,” she said.
Christenson said staff members have started a log of when people enter and leave the facility.
“We always keep track of when people enter the facility, but now we are keeping track of when people exit the facility for cases like this, so we can let people know if someone was there at the same time,” she said.
Christenson said frequently touched surfaces are cleaned hourly, and the Timbers is limited to 50 percent capacity.
New director
Christenson said she started working for the Parks Department as a part-time employee in 1999. She said she was hired to fill a full-time role in 2005.
“It’s awesome. I have worked for this department since I was 16 and done every job,” Christenson said.
Sabo said Christenson will be paid $60,000 as the director. She was earning $52,707 as the superintendent.
Myers was earning $81,854.24 per year, Sabo said. She started working for the department on July 26, 2004, he said.
“It has been difficult after nearly 16 years to leave such a fantastic team of dedicated professionals, a team I will miss very much,” Myers said. “However, I leave the city’s Parks and Recreation efforts in the most capable hands as I move on to my next chapter. It has been my true honor to serve such a wonderful community.”
Myers, 41, lives in Eureka with her husband, Barrett, and stepdaughter, Evie. She provided no details on what her plans are.
Christenson and Recreation coordinator Lizzie Roberds said Myers will be missed.
Roberds was a part-time employee at the department for eight years before taking a full-time position two years ago. She said it was a pleasure to watch Myers direct the department into what it is today.
“I am going to miss her leadership and most definitely her support,” Roberds said. “She was fantastic. She has always been so kind.”