Despite the hot temperatures this summer, Naperville’s Centennial Beach has seen a drop in total attendance numbers compared to last year due, in part, to closures caused by inclement weather and the drowning death of a patron.
However, the number of people playing rounds at Springbrook and Naperbrook golf courses has remained on par with what the Naperville Park District saw in 2024.
From May 26, which was Memorial Day, through Aug. 14, 94,077 people visited Centennial Beach, according to Sameera Luthman, park district director of marketing and communications. That’s a decrease of about 15% compared to the same time frame in 2024, when they’d had 111,021 visitors.
Total 2024 attendance at Centennial Beach was 11% above average last summer, attracting some 143,000 visitors between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends.
There were nine days this year on which Centennial Beach experienced low attendance, Luthman said. And the facility was forced to close for two days — July 11-12 — because of the weather and a third day, July 11, following the death of a 27-year-old man from Streamwood, which also resulted in the pool closing early on July 10.
Unlike the beach, golf course attendance has been consistent with what the park district saw in 2024. Through Aug. 13, Springbrook Golf Course recorded 19,536 rounds played and Naperbrook Golf Course logged 18,111, data shows.
The numbers at Springbrook and Naperbrook are consistent with numbers from 2024 for the same time period, with last year’s tallies being 18,664 and 18,609 respectively, Luthman said.
“For golf, May to early June 2025 was cool with below normal temperatures followed by extreme heat in late June,” she said. “July has seen higher than normal temperatures and humidity, which also brought several rounds of heavy rains.”
Luthman noted that on days when it is particularly hot, golfers will play earlier in the morning or in the evening to avoid the heat. The colder weather earlier in the summer also impacted attendance at Centennial Beach, she said.
As summer approaches its end, Naperville residents only have until Sept. 1 to enjoy the water at Centennial Beach. The facility will be closed Aug. 20-22 and Aug. 25-29, according to the park district.
Because the number of weekends in the season are dwindling, weather could play a role in how many people head to Centennial and what their final attendance count tallies in at. The National Weather Service’s forecast as of Monday was calling for sunny conditions at the end of the week and no rain predicted.
cstein@chicagotribune.com
