+ POOL
July 29, 2026
9:30 AM
Construction nearly complete!
We are excited to share that construction of our first pool is nearly complete!
However, we were super bummed to learn recently that utility construction work for NYC Brooklyn Bridge-Montgomery Coastal Resilience (BMCR) must continue on site through the fall, which means we are unable to install our pilot pool this summer.
The sewer line we have been permitted to hook up to by the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (Ie. “DEP”) and originally planned to use is no longer available to us. The line is being replaced by the hard working team at BMCR and the completion of the new sewer line will not be ready until fall.
Why Sewer?
The pool requires a sewer hook up to discharge waste from regular backwashing of the filters. This waste cannot be (nor would we want it to be!) discharged into the river — we are only discharging filtered river water with no chemicals back to the source. This means we must postpone our summer demonstration of the pool system for public health agencies.
All 17 required City, State, and Federal approvals for the on-site demonstration have been secured, and we are working with agency partners to extend or amend them for next year’s installation.
What’s next?
While we wait for a sewer hook up, we are excited to debut the fully constructed pool, which is nearly complete. Since we won’t be onsite, we plan to lead tours of the facility this September from the shipyard where it was constructed (and where a new episode of NCIS was recently filmed!) in Red Hook, Brooklyn.
Shortly thereafter, we’ll perform a different pilot test in advance of opening: winterizing the facility for the off season. Winterizing the barge will help us prepare and maintain our filtration equipment for storage through the New York winter and teach us a lot about the process for future seasons.
Construction of the pool nearly complete!
The pilot pool testing facility deploys all mechanics of the pool to bring East River water into the facility, treats it on site, feeds the pool, sends waste to the sewer, and discharges filtered water back to the source. This includes full construction of all components below deck for the organization’s first publicly occupied pool – POOL1 – including a completed pool basin and fully functioning advanced river water filtration system.
The more than 320-ton floating steel structure features a 1,745 square foot pool consisting of a stainless steel shell with a reinforced PVC membrane liner and 22 individual peripheral wall jets. The pool slopes from 4 ft to 7 ft, (with an average depth of 4.76 ft), and holds 62,126 gallons (8,305 cubic ft) of water, replenished from the surrounding river water every 1 to 2 hours. Below deck, POOL1 houses hundreds of feet of piping, dozens of valves, 21 pumps, 3 filtration/disinfection systems, controls equipment, and is accessible to pool operators by a ships ladder.
Phase two construction of the 7,000 sq ft on-deck components will commence once the full-scale operational demonstration of the filtration system is concluded and observed by health agencies. This includes lifeguard stations, showers, bathrooms, and locker rooms to facilitate public pool occupancy.