The forecast says triple digits, the office AC says good luck, and your kids have discovered the word “bored.” Summer in the foothills has a way of turning even the shadiest backyard into a slow braise — so let the city do the cooling for you.
Enter Parks After Dark, the free evening program celebrating its 15th foothill summer, with two watery consolations for the heat-weary. First up, tonight: the Foam & Glow Frenzy runs 8 to 9:30 p.m. — an open-air riot of fluffy foam, music, dance, and glow accessories, all engineered to make a Thursday feel like a rave your grandmother could attend. Head on over to Villa Parke Community Center Softball Field at 363 E. Villa St. Need more? Call (626) 744-6530.
Then there’s Aqua Boogie Nights, the Saturday pool party running through August 8, alternating between the freshly renovated Kennedy Pool on Fair Oaks and the Villa Parke pool, 6 to 9 p.m. Think swimming, music, and dancing — lifeguards on duty, swim attire required, kids accompanied by an adult. No sign-up, no waitlist; just show up dressed and ready to swim. Kennedy is the shiny one here, reopened after a $5.9-million renovation and now the city’s year-round aquatics home, so the water’s a genuine upgrade over the garden hose.
Both are free, all ages, and refreshingly short on the usual summer-fun asterisks — no tickets, no reservations, no small print. New this year: Caltech scientists and engineers turning up at select nights with hands-on STEM, the first time in the program’s 15-year run they’ve joined the DJs and swimmers. It’s the kind of only-in-Pasadena flourish that means your kid might leave a foam party knowing something about circuits, which is more than most of us can say about our own July evenings. (Which nights get the Caltech treatment hasn’t been announced, so consider it a bonus if you catch one.)
And it’s all part of a longer summer run — movies in the park on Fridays, a World Cup soccer tournament with Dena United, an Aztec dance night, a teen neon party — stretching from the July 9 kickoff at Robinson Park through August 14 across seven parks. Translation: you have excuses to leave the house until nearly Labor Day, and none of them cost a dime.
Bring a towel, bring the neighbors, and bring the kid who’s mastered “bored.” Your move.
Foam & Glow Frenzy: Thurs. July 16, 8–9:30 p.m. (venue Villa Parke Community Center, 363 E. Villa St. — confirm with PRCS). Aqua Boogie Nights: Kennedy Pool (1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave.) and Villa Parke pool, Saturdays through Aug. 8, 6–9 p.m. Free, all ages. CityOfPasadena.net/Parks-And-Rec, (626) 744-6530
