by Nicole Lee • Democrat & Chronicle, link to origi8nal article
Staff members at the Lock 32 Whitewater Park on Clover Street in Pittsford are looking forward to more teaching space for the children and adults who will take classes this season.
A 24-foot by 36-foot modular unit — a structure that can accommodate up to 30 people — was erected at the park last month. Layers of crushed stone were added and other re-grading was done on the property to ensure level ground to place the unit.
Plans are to incorporate a small office and changing rooms for kayakers inside the building once electricity has been installed, said park manager Andrew Cook, 29, of Rochester. A boat storage area is also being considered.
The four-acre site includes the park and classroom building, and an access area from the park to the Erie Canal. The park is operated by the Genesee Waterways Center. The Genesee Waterways Center also plans to work with the Canal Corporation and other agencies that use the canal to increase community awareness about the park.
The reward for park instructors is helping a child evolve from being afraid of the water to being a confident kayaker.
“We’ve really worked hard to get a lot of kids into kayaking,” Cook said. “I really like seeing (the children) grow up and become better boaters.”
In years past, Doran said, visitors to the Lock 32 park were surprised that the teaching area consisted of only two small trailers.
Before the canal season opens on May 1, staff and other volunteers will help spruce up Lock 32 during a “Canal Clean Sweep” to be held Friday, April 10. The lock is closed during the winter and help is needed to remove sticks from the water, arrange rocks and do general cleanup, said Brian Page, a Pittsford Mendon High School sophomore and three-year Clean Sweep volunteer.
