New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently announced plans to bring a + POOL, a filtered floating pool, to a section of the East River near Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The pool, which will be located off of Pier 35’s dock, is part of a broader effort to expand swimming access across the city.
Rendering of proposed + POOL in the East River, via pluspool.com
The city and state are collaborating on a water filtration demonstration, set to begin this August. This initiative will assess the feasibility of the + POOL, which will filter water directly from the surrounding environment. The test is designed to ensure that the pool can meet all health and safety requirements. The filtration project at Pier 35 will be followed by a pilot pool in 2025, which will undergo further testing to ensure safety.
The Adams administration’s investment in pool infrastructure is the city’s largest commitment to swimming facilities since the 1970s. In addition to the + POOL project, the city is building new recreation centers with indoor pools in Queens and Brooklyn, renovating existing pools, and partnering with the Central Park Conservancy to open a new pool at the Harlem Meer.
Rendering of a + POOL, via pluspool.com
“Through innovative solutions like + POOL, we are providing children and their families with safe spaces to swim in New York City,” said Governor Hochul. “NY SWIMS is the largest statewide investment in swimming since the New Deal, and we’re increasing access to pools while helping our kids learn how to stay safe in the water.”
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Been hearing this for the past several years. Will this be ready by 2040?
I’m sorry this is and will always be the absolute stupidest concept on the planet, it only rivals the Lowline for grift.
First, the tech doesn’t work, they tried it off of Chelsea Piers? what happened there? Second so they get the water clean how do they keep it clean with all the people in it, kids peeing etc? Plus the water temp will be freezing, not to mention placing it where the currents are totally off the charts.
I love big ideas but it’s time to do big things like build more transit and parks before we do dumb things like this.
Of course they were able to get Adams and Hochel behind this, there isn’t a grift they won’t support.
Lowline, BQX, these are all follies distracting us from the real work to make this city better.
Yep.
An absolute waste of money. We don’t have enough lifeguards at existing pools and they are spending how many millions on this? We barely utilize the pools we have, this is just gonna be for influencers to post on social media. I am already picturing the first wake from a east river ferry that splashes east river water all over this thing.
Swimming pool with sunshade and winding walkways floating above the water, it would be beautiful to look down from the tower: Thanks.
Total waste of money. So you can line up to and swim for 15 min? There is no deck space to hang out! Just an all around dumb design.
This will cost a fortune to maintain.
Visually, it looks spectacular. In practical reality, likely not so much. Still, it’s a cheap, VERY visible way for Pols to say “See, we care !!”. Funny for all the slamming Robert Moses gets, his phenomenal pools in mostly poorer sections of NYC are a Summer blessing to locals who can’t afford to escape the swelter.
What I want to know is how safe is RIVER WATER to swim in a pool? Can only imagine the potential health issues yet to come?
When I visited earlier in the season the big beautiful Red Hook Pool was reduced in size to 1/3 of its area they said due to lack of lifeguards. Please utilize fully the pools we have, and bring back lap swimming!!!