AURORA — The Aurora Parks, Recreation and Open Space staff is readying the city’s golf courses and playing fields for a summer season that promises to be busy with new attractions and free admission at all outdoor pools every Friday.

Free Fridays is a new initiative that city council sanctioned this year in an effort to encourage activity and reintroduce residents to two outdoor pools — Pheasant Run and Village Green — which were both reopened last summer after years of dormancy.

“I was very happy council got the funds to reopen Pheasant Run in my ward last year,” said Ward 5 Councilmember Bob Roth. “I think that the neighbors will appreciate the gesture (of Free Fridays), and I think that it will get more people excited about the reopening of the pool.”

Free Fridays applies to all guests, not just children, said Sherri-Jo Stowell, spokeswoman for the Aurora parks department.Most outdoor pools will open for summer on May 24, and the Aurora Reservoir Swim Beach opens May 23.

Construction on the new Del Mar Pool spray park is also well underway and expected to open to guests in June. Stowell said city staff is also launching a “Summer in the City” play series every Wednesday at Del Mar Park, starting May 28. Activities will include free, inflatable water slides, park games, nature activities and snacks from noon to 2 p.m.

Golf courses and sports fields in Aurora are also being prepared for athletes and spectators alike. Prior to opening, fields must be clipped, striped, and aerated across the city.

“With irrigation system preparation and sports field layout, we’re working hard every day to make sure we provide a top-notch sports facility to our players and tournament guests,” said David McMahan, maintenance supervisor at Aurora Sports Park. “We bring on so many new employees as temporary maintenance workers” to prepare for summer.

The golf courses at Fitzsimons and Meadow Hills will have new or renovated restaurants open this summer.Fitzsimons Golf Course at 2323 Scranton St.is opening the Tin Cup 2 restaurant the week of May 19.

Likewise, the Tavern at Meadow Hills Golf Course at 3609 S. Dawson St. unveiled a complete renovation May 20.The restaurant will offer half-priced menu items all day May 22.

Plans for the complete repurposing of the closed Centre Hills Par 3 Golf Course are also in full swing. Volunteers and staff will install new trails on the site Aug. 2, and a dog park and disk golf course will be constructed thereafter.

“We expect that people will be playing disc golf by this fall,” Stowell said. “We have a disc golf course consultant on board who has already reviewed the plans for the trails at the park and agrees that they are appropriate for a disc golf course.”

She said staff will announce a public meeting this fall to seek input on hole layout, playability, distances, and how to add variety for disc golfers. The dog park will be the last added amenity.

Public parks across the city are also being renovated or updated. Most notably, Cottonwood Park will undergo a complete, $800,000 renovation that will have it closed all summer.

Officials in the parks department said that Cottonwood Park is more than 40 years old and is among the most dated public use spaces in the city. A revitalized irrigation system and new basketball courts are planned priorities.

“We are going to bid on construction in a few weeks, and work will begin this summer,” Stowell said. “We expect that the project will be complete about four months after they break ground.”

Megan Mitchell: 303-954-2650 or mmitchell@denverpost.com

Pool time

These pools will be open May 24 to 25 from noon to 6 p.m., and May 26 from 1 to 5 p.m.:

• Meadow Hills Pool at 3609 S. Dawson St.

• Moorhead Pool at 2390 Havana St.

• Parklane Pool at 13003 E. 30th Ave.

• Village Green Pool at 1300 S. Chambers Circle

These pools will be open May 31 and June 1, from noon to 6 p.m., and then begin regular hours June 6. :

• Aqua Vista Pool at 18700 E. Wagontrail Circle

• Pheasant Run Pool at 14971 E. Pheasant Run Parkway

• Del Mar Pool at 12000 E. 6th Ave. is closed for renovations until May 2015.