Mayor Adams announces major public pool upgrades with $1B 'Let's Swim NYC' initiative
Lifeguards getting ready at Astoria Pool in Astoria Park, Queens, New York. (Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
NEW YORK CITY - Mayor Eric Adams and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation launched the "Let's Swim NYC" initiative on Tuesday, a $1 billion capital investment to build, improve, and protect the city's public pools over the next five years.
This funding represents the city's largest investment in swimming infrastructure since the 1970s, according to a press release.
Through the "Let's Swim NYC" initiative, the city will allocate much-needed funds to 39 pools, including the construction of two brand-new indoor pools and the complete renovation of three additional pools.
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This historic investment will enhance safe water access across all five boroughs, promote public safety, and help more New Yorkers learn essential water safety skills.
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"New York City’s pools and beaches are incredible places for New Yorkers to come together, learn to swim, and beat the heat," Mayor Adams said. "As climate change makes heat waves like this week’s more common and more severe, the need for pools has never been greater."
People swim at the Foster Pool in the Bronx borough of New York City on July 28, 2023. July is on track to be the hottest month in recorded history, scientists confirmed on July 27, as UN chief Antonio Guterres warned Earth has moved into an "era of
In addition to "Let's Swim NYC", New York City Department of Education (DOE) Chancellor David C. Banks unveiled two newly completed, state-of-the-art swimming pools at the Harry S. Truman High School campus in the Bronx.
"These facilities not only promote physical fitness and wellness, but also foster a sense of community and pride within the school community," Banks said.
City officials announced that $85 million of the over $1 billion investment will be dedicated to repair projects aimed at protecting the aging infrastructure of the pools.
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