Quincy's Pool Closed and The Pitch Opened on the Same Day. Fall Here Runs Differently Now.

On Monday, Sept. 7, the Quincy Aquatic Center held its last open swim of 2026, from 1:00 to 4:30 p.m. That same day at noon, The Pitch opened to the public at 900 13th Ave. SW. One Labor Day afternoon covered both ends of the season. The town's newest summer facility closed for the year, and a place built for evenings and cold months opened its doors. October's calendar follows the same pattern. As the outdoor season shuts down date by date, the gaps are being filled close to home, by businesses and volunteer groups that plan to stay open after the weather turns.

Two doors on Labor Day

The aquatic center is the summer anchor Quincy waited years for. The Post-Register described the $14.6 million East Park project as including a six-lane pool, slides and a splash pad, and it was scheduled to open around late June or early July. By Sept. 7 it had finished its first season. On the Good Morning Quincy daily brief that morning, the host said plainly that the pool would be "closed after today."

The Pitch began with a different problem in mind. Brent Dowlen's profile in Life in the 98848, which Source ONE News republished, opens with this line:

"For families in the 98848, finding something different to do can sometimes begin with getting in the car and leaving town."

Clark and Tiffany Grigg built The Pitch in response. The idea started when Tiffany saw BatBox, a virtual batting system, on Instagram. It grew from a batting facility into a family entertainment center where BatBox is one attraction among several. They started in a rented storefront in Suites 6 and 7 instead of building a large facility, so they could learn how Quincy actually uses the space. During public hours, $5 general admission covers the freeplay attractions.

The posted schedule is built for evenings and weekends:

• Kids Club: Tuesday through Thursday, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., for ages 5 to 13
• Public hours, Tuesday through Thursday: 6:30 to 9 p.m.
• Friday: 3 to 10 p.m.
• Saturday: 1 to 11 p.m.
• Sunday and Monday: by appointment

On opening day the Good Morning Quincy host said, "We don't have anything else like it here in town." Those hours, running past 10 p.m. on weekends, would matter less in July. They matter more in a month when the outdoor season keeps losing pieces.

The dates that close out October outdoors

Fall in Quincy is set by a series of fixed dates, and most of them were posted weeks in advance. The full sequence, in order:

The pickleball tournament is a second try. It was originally scheduled for earlier in the year and was canceled because of smoke. The new date is Saturday, Oct. 10, with check-in at 8 a.m., play at 9 a.m., doubles open to all skill levels for players 16 and older, and a $60 entry fee per team. Proceeds support local projects and youth programs. The night before, Colockum Ridge Golf Course is hosting Night Golf. Check-in and dinner start at 6 p.m. and the shotgun start is at 7. The $60 per player covers a nine-hole green fee, three glow balls and a pulled pork dinner, and signups are by phone at 509-787-6206 or in person.

For anyone with a yard, the canal dates are the ones that count. The Quincy-Columbia Basin Irrigation District says water users with questions about the shutdown schedule should contact their ditchrider or area watermaster. Six days earlier, the City's Fall Clean-Up Day runs at the City yard at 1st Avenue SW and Division Street W. It is free for Quincy city residents, with a $10 fee for each Freon appliance.

For pumpkins and squash before the cold arrives, White Trail Produce at 10024 Road U NW, about three miles outside town, is marking nearly 25 years of selling locally grown produce.

Crescent Bar is keeping a light on

Crescent Bar shows the shift most clearly, because it has long been a summer-first place. Encore by Atlas Fare had been open on a soft basis for a couple of months before its official ribbon cutting with the Quincy Valley Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 1. The timing is the point. A restaurant on the river held its official welcome at the start of October, after the summer crowd had gone.

Encore's website says it is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday year-round. Reservations are available online for parties of up to 12, and walk-ins are welcome. The Post-Register's launch coverage described an earlier plan for lunch and dinner Wednesday through Saturday, with Sunday brunch to follow. The current posted schedule is Friday through Sunday, so check that before driving down on a weeknight.

Encore also has the most grown-up Halloween plan on the calendar. Encore After Dark is a 21+ party on Saturday, Oct. 31, from 7 to 10 p.m., with doors at 6:30. It includes a live DJ, a buffet and a costume contest, and tickets are $55 plus tax and gratuity.

What fills the calendar after the water stops

Once the canal is off, the schedule moves indoors and downtown. Here is the sequence from late October through the holidays:

1. Friday, Oct. 30: Downtown Trick-or-Treat. The Quincy Valley Chamber of Commerce event runs from 5 p.m. until the candy runs out, usually around 7:30. Chamber executive director Catalina Blancas said participating businesses will be spread across downtown, where in past years they were concentrated on a short stretch of B Street. "We're trying to get all of Central kind of packed up just like this," she told the Post-Register. Blancas estimated about 500 children attend, and Albert Castro of Phase 3 DJ Services is back to provide the music.
2. Weekends from Oct. 16 to Nov. 7: Veteran's Stories/Uniform Exhibit. The Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum is opening the exhibit in the Barn on Fridays and Saturdays from 1 to 5 p.m. on Oct. 16–17, 23–24 and 30–31, and Nov. 6–7.
3. Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veteran's Day program. The museum's program begins with flag placement at Quincy Cemetery at 7 a.m. The exhibit is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
4. First and third Tuesdays, October through December: Crafternoon for Kids. Quincy Public Library holds it from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
5. Dec. 18 and 19: Elflandia. Quincy Valley Allied Arts is staging this children's Christmas musical, which the group calls "a short musical about a land of big dreams and curly toes." Auditions and practices for K–8 students run Mondays from 3:15 to 6 p.m. starting Oct. 5 at the Quincy Middle School Performing Arts Center.
6. Sunday, Dec. 20: Old Fashioned Christmas service. It is on the museum's calendar from 5 to 7 p.m.

Smaller events fill the weeks in between. The museum's monthly Poetry Open Mic meets Wednesday, Oct. 7, from 7 to 8 p.m. at Pioneer Church, 415 F Street SW. Grant County Fire District 3 holds its Quincy open house on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., with free hot dogs, a junior firefighter obstacle course, Halloween bags and Sparky. The Riverside Restaurant and Store hosted a trivia night at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 1.

One detour to plan around

Starting Wednesday, Sept. 30, part of Central Avenue North closed to through traffic for a private sewer-main connection. The City's notice gives no completion date. The Oct. 1 Good Morning Quincy brief placed the closure north of the railroad tracks and said it would last "for a little while," and asked drivers to use the detour. With trick-or-treat expanding across downtown on Oct. 30, check the City's news page that afternoon before planning a route to Central.

Fall changes more than weekend plans. It also changes how a home shows, from yards after the irrigation shutoff to rooms lit by early evenings. If you're wondering how your place would look to buyers this season, The Rachel Olson Group can walk you through it with real numbers. Request your free home valuation.