![At the Como Park pool in St. Paul, Layne Gillitzer,6, joined his mother, Chris, sister Juells(cq),5, and friend Schanley Hunter,5, down the water slide to the refreshing pool below.] rtsong-taatarii@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XYVFP6VTEMWWL76KFLROHSJAOA.jpg?&w=1080)
The lap lanes are only 25 yards, rather than the 50 meters you find at competition-length summer pools. It doesn't matter. The renovated Como pool opened last summer and it was done right. Like all St. Paul public pools, the water is kept clean with sphagnum moss — not chlorine — which is kinder to the skin and pricey swimsuits. The toddlers can waddle into the zero-depth pool, the tweens can tube down the lazy river or dive off the man-made cliffs. The truly bewitching swim comes at dawn. Nothing beats watching the hot summer sun rise between the trees as you slide through a mile or two in the morning. 1151 Como Av., St. Paul; 651-642-0650.
Runner-up: Edina Aquatic Center
