The Oakley Recreation Center

Not to be confused with the Oatly Playground upon which NO DAIRY CAN BE CONSUMED. If you think I'm wrong, prove it. I dairy you to surprise me. This is a cool playground in the Northeast part of Cincinnati and it's usually pretty busy and popular - and the only problem is that traffic nearby can be pretty treacherous.

Not for the recreation center itself, but a review for the connecting park and surrounding areas. The playground itself is newer. It is a structure with things for ages 2-12. During our visit the majority of the equipment was in good working order. Parts of the playground were flooded due to recent rains. There were still plenty of areas to play on. Some spinning thing kept my middle child entertained while the older one was part of the clean up. We came to do a trash clean up, and boy did we have our work cut out for us. We cleaned what we could, but had to leave due to poor weather. Masks, cigarette butts, and beer bottles/cans were the items we found the most of. There was plenty of other trash too. Most of it was along the paved paths, and the edges of the playground.

I'm seriously obsessed with the Oakley pool and am, quite frankly, disappointed in myself for taking so long to discover it. It might actually be Cincinnati's best kept secret! It's pretty unassuming from the road, but for only $3, it's the perfect way to spend a hot afternoon.There is a pretty large pool with some lanes for laps, a diving board, and a slide. There isn't a ton of "lounging" space, but they do provide adirondack chairs - plus, plenty of people just lay out on their own towels on the concrete. There's also a little kiddie pool with an awning and a splash area. They do adult swim every hour for 15 minutes. The only thing I wish they had is a concession area, but I saw plenty of people who packed sandwiches and snacks (even though you apparently aren't supposed to bring in food). I plan on sending many more hot and humid afternoons here!

This is a CRC pool and has just this year been completely redone--there is a brand new splash pad, baby pool (which is partially covered/shaded), main pool with lap lane, and a separate deep end with water slide and diving board.Everything is really nice and it is only $1 for children and $2 for adults---SAY WHAT?!?! Yes that is right. They even have life jackets if your little one isn't the most confident swimmer. I don't think you'll find anywhere else in Cincinnati where you can swim cheaper--a summer family membership is $65 and gets you in to any (except Otto) CRC pool in Cincinnati. The parking lot is small, but I still managed to get parked without issue.There aren't any lounge chairs, but a few chairs to sit. Make sure you bring cash because they do not accept cards. I fully expect to be here all summer with my two kids--even if they decide they are done swimming after 30 minutes it's okay because it is so cheap!

Our kids swim on the swim team here. It is free with your membership. They went from not knowing how to swim to participating in city wide swim meets and placing. I highly recommend the programs available through the Cincinnati Recreation Commission. There are many locations and they are different programs at each location. www.cincinnati-oh.gov/crc

Last summer, we spent a few wonderful afternoons at this pool. Yes, it's true that it has recently been updated--the actual facility is very nice: Great diving boards, a splash area for littles, a shaded baby pool, and all very clean. We headed out today with the understanding that yes, it would be very busy and that actually getting in through the gate would require patience. We haven't purchased a membership yet, so I brought along just enough cash to get in today. Well, we got there right at 1:00 pm, which is the opening time according to the CRC website. Hours are 1-7:30, every day. We found parking in the lower lot and strode up the hill to the little card table where they were accepting money and membership applications. Two women brusquely informed me that in fact the pool wouldn't be open until 2 pm. I felt like I was somehow intruding. We decided to play in the splash area, which was open, until 2. An hour rolled by, day camp groups started to file in, and I got back in line with my $3. Apparently, the daily prices had gone up and the website hadn't reflected that. I had to open the website on my phone to read to the older lady who seemed resolute that I somehow produce more money from my bag even though I really didn't have any more on me and we had already waited an hour. Luckily, her associate understood that this wasn't my fault and said that they'd make an exception just this once. I thanked her and proceeded to fill out the daily application card. They didn't actually take my money, which seemed odd to me. Ten minutes later, as we were still waiting to get into the pool area and after I had seen a couple of lifeguards nervously come and go from the application/payment table, one of the women announced that the pool would not be opening until much, much later today and that it would just be best if we tried coming back tomorrow. I had been watching the lifeguards deal with the pool, and it seemed like the chemicals were the problem. I know nothing about pool maintenance, but I was frustrated that they couldn't have been more prepared and that they couldn't have updated the website with the issues they were having and the price change. Hopefully they can adopt a better, more cheerful attitude towards their patrons. Good customer service has the power to change the whole atmosphere, even when things aren't going quite right.

Gang, this review is only for the playground because everything else was closed when we visited: It's a playground. There are no bathrooms. There is no shade. It is adequate as a playground, though I would not recommend it as a place to use the bathroom or relax in the shade.

The staff at the pool are unprofessional, rude and unprepared. The lifeguards play inappropriate music for a pool filled with young children and spend more time talking to each other than watching the water. The swim lessons are equally terrible and after 3 classes I gave up since they refused to even try with my terrified child. Take 5 extra minutes and drive to the Pleasant Ridge pool. It has better staff and better facilities.