Super Pass pool program holders in northeastern Johnson County will have access to another municipal pool for the 2026 swim season.
After dropping out in 2024, Roeland Park will rejoin the Super Pass program next summer. The Roeland Park City Council unanimously approved the move at its meeting on Nov. 17.
The program allows pass holders access to any participating city pool, which in 2025 included Fairway, Mission and Prairie Village.
Those three cities are set to remain in the program next year, and Roeland Park will be added back. In previous years, Leawood and Merriam also participated in the program but no longer do.
Roeland Park Councilmember Emily Hage said she has heard anecdotally that Roeland Park residents appreciated the Super Pass program, and when the city dropped out, residents started buying their pool passes in other communities.
“I do hope that this helps encourage more Roeland Park families to buy their pool passes here, too, and I think there’s a ton of value in that,” she said.
Why Roeland Park dropped out
In 2024, the city of Roeland Park dropped out of the Super Pass pool program due, in part, to staffing shortages at its municipal pool outside the Roeland Park Community Center, 4843 Rosewood Drive.
The city was unable to keep the Roeland Park Aquatic Center open seven days a week in 2023 due to staffing issues.
Roeland Park city staff told the Post that this created an influx of pool users from Roeland Park at other nearby municipal pools, creating a burden on those cities’ pools.
There were also issues in how Roeland Park implemented the Super Pass program in 2023.
The city did not follow the program’s eligibility requirement that all Super Pass holders must have been season pass holders at their city’s pool the prior year. Roeland Park gave Super Passes to residents who had not had season passes in Roeland Park the previous year.
Roeland Park also sold Super Passes to residents of Fairway, Mission and Prairie Village, violating another rule of the program.
Roeland Park must follow special rules in 2026
As a result, for the 2026 aquatic season, Roeland Park must adhere to special rules as required by the other Super Pass cities.
Roeland Park is only allowed to sell Super Pass upgrades to residents who hold a pool membership already (including individual, senior or family memberships).
Any Roeland Park resident who wants to upgrade to the Super Pass in 2026 must have held a city pool membership in 2025.
Roeland Park also cannot sell Super Passes to non-residents.
Nathan Brungardt, the Roeland Park parks and recreation superintendent, told the city council on Nov. 17 that residents of other participating cities took advantage of Roeland Park’s family packages to get cheaper Super Passes.
This led to revenue losses for the other participating cities, Brungardt said, particularly Fairway, which lost roughly $10,000 in revenue that year.
“I’m hopeful to show that we can follow the rules and be a good partner going forward,” Brungardt said.
The program’s revenue structure is also changing
Starting in the 2026 season, all of the fees accumulated from Super Pass sales across all four participating cities will be placed into a shared pot, Brungardt said.
The pot will be distributed to the participating cities based on Super Pass holder attendance at their specific pools.
Brungardt said he anticipates this to reduce Roeland Park’s revenue from the Super Pass pool program, meaning it will likely not be a revenue driver for the city.
For the 2026 season, Roeland Park residents who want to upgrade to the Super Pass membership will need to pay an additional $20 per person.
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