Shady Oak Beach Season Summary

Offer a full range of programs for people of all ages, ability levels, and economic and cultural backgrounds ensuring all have the opportunity to participate in both athletic activities as well as cultivating appreciation and interest in the natural world within our parks.

Staff will provide a 2026 Shady Oak Beach season summary and address comments and questions.

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The 2026 Shady Oak Beach season began on Saturday, June 6, and the facility remained open through Sunday, August 16, spanning a 10-week season. The beach reopened to the public, free of charge without lifeguards and concessions, August 21 through August 27.

This season, there were 55 part-time seasonal staff across six roles including concession attendants, gate attendants, lifeguards, head lifeguards, shift leaders and two facility supervisors. The team was comprised of 21 new hires and 34 returning staff from previous seasons. Returning staff received an increase of 3% in their hourly wage. Overall, there were 160 applicants for seasonal beach positions. Between all positions during the 10-week season, a total of 700 training hours were worked. In addition, there were approximately 825 hours worked during pre-season trainings and set-up and post-season tear-down activities at the beach facility.

The beach partnered with two local food vendors this year, Freeziac (frozen yogurt) and Boba Tonka (bubble tea) for concessions sales. New items on the menu included hamburgers and cheeseburgers with bacon and chicken strips. The top selling item was the large freezee, selling 1,792 with the next item being the soft pretzels with 978 sold. 

With a fully staffed lifeguard team this season, the Wibit obstacle course was open to guests every day of the week from 1-5 p.m. Due to the Wibit popularity, it is a goal is to expand the type of water obstacles that are offered in the future. The departmen acquired a Hennepin County Youth Grant for $9,770 that will be used in 2027 towards new inflatables. Hopkins also acquired a grant to replace all the toilets for the facility for 2027. 

On Friday, July 17, Shady Oak Beach hosted it's first annual Teen Night. The beach was still open and accessible to everyone that evening. The night was filled with games and activities that allowed patrons of all ages to participate, resulting in an enjoyable family night for all. 

A staff highlight of the summer was the Shady Oak Beach Lifeguard team’s 1st place victory at the Lifeguard Olympics, out of 18 teams from surrounding cities. This event evaluated lifesaving skills, first aid, teamwork and lifeguard knowledge. The lifeguards have competed in this event for the last four years and have placed either 1st or 2nd each year!

Below is a summary of the 2026 Shady Oak Beach operations: 

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