LODI -- At 85 degrees and little to no breeze, it was a perfect day to go out on a boat or take a dip in Lodi Lake. But on Wednesday, swimmers had to stay out of the water.
According to the City of Lodi, this is because they are understaffed and don't have enough lifeguards. They had to shut the beach down for three days last week and two days this week.
"I'm coming from Stockton. I wouldn't have known that it's closed due to not having the staffing, which is really critical because I wouldn't want my child to go in if there's not the appropriate staffing," Stockton resident Julie Ezqueda said.
But that's not all that is impacting lake lovers. Lodi Lake fees are increasing on July 1, just ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
"Lodi has never been this expensive," Lodi Resident Gurleen Kaur shared. "We've lived here for over 10 years now and I mean, everything is just double now. It's just double, double, double, but people are not getting paid enough."
Here's the new fee breakdown:
Entry fees: increasing from $5 to $8 for residents, $10 for nonresidentsAnnual entry pass: increasing from $50 to $80 for residents, $100 for nonresidentsAnnual boat launch fees: increasing from $100 to $130 for residents, $156 for nonresidentsEntry fees for the beach: $3 for residents, $5 for nonresidentsThe only fee staying unchanged is the one-time boat launch fee at $13.
According to the city, they are increasing fees to match fees at other similar facilities in the region, claiming their fees are about 60% lower in comparison.
They also say it'll increase revenue by more than $93,000 annually, which would go towards upkeep of the lake.
Regardless, people from near and far worry they won't be able to afford to come to this special lake in Lodi during the hot summer months.
"My aunt is a stay-at-home mom so I don't know if that would be something that she would continue to be able to afford," Kaur said. "I know that her kids come here and swim as well, so that's unfortunate to hear that, because everything's going up."
Another issue some locals were mentioning was parking. According to them, last year, some days got so packed that neighborhoods were full of parked cars. Some people even parked in others' driveways and worry that this issue will get even worse with the higher costs.
CBS Sacramento asked the city and the parks department about these changes, but they were not available to speak for this story.
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