+ POOL is Taking Shape!

Major milestone alert!

We completed construction of the specialized barge designed to house the filtration system, pool, and on deck amenities for our first pool — a 2,000 sq. ft. rectangular version of the iconic plus-shaped design! Check it out just chillin’ in the Bollinger Shipyard waiting for some marine grade paint to arrive:

A close up of the hull that houses the filtration equipment

Pretty soon, the barge will be towed from the shipyard in Mississippi to New York to be retrofitted into the world’s first water-filtering floating swimming pool, once health agencies have approved the final design of the facility. The journey will traverse several bodies of water from Pascagoula, Mississippi, through Florida Bay and Biscayne Bay, continuing along the eastern U.S. Atlantic coastline before arriving at a shipyard in New York City.

We’re shooting to have the 2,000 sq. ft. rectangular pool installed in the river at Pier 35 in May 2026. We won’t have public swimming until city agencies get to see the full thing in action for awhile, and the pool’s filtration system is tested at full scale. Once approved, we’ll be able to do a final retrofit of the pool and full build-out of the facility for safe public use. We hope to be able to release renderings of the facility at the end of this year after agency sign off!

Background

In January 2024, Governor Kathy Hochul announced new regulations for public access to city waters, funding for the construction of a pilot + POOL, and the NY SWIMS initiative, the largest investment in public swimming facilities since the WPA. + POOL is anticipated to be the first innovation permitted by local authorities using the new regulations and a catalyst for future proposals for swimming safely in New York’s waterways. We’re proud to be shaping this path forward!

Gov. Hochul and Mayor Adams, NY SWIMS, 2024

So what's been done and what's next?

Aside from building our floating vessel pictured above, we have tested the water treatment process in the river at Pier 35 and submitted findings to NYC and NYS permitting agencies. Read the detailed filtration report here—prepared by global built environment consultancy Arup who helped engineer the system to clean river water so water coming into the pool is safe to swim in. So what’s next?

This Summer, weekly water quality testing continues with the Interstate Environmental Commission to collect baseline data.
We’re working on final design of all the elements that go into and onto the barge pictured here (pool, filters, piping, decking, railings, bathrooms, first aid — all the things!), which will be submitted to health agencies for final review.
We’ll then wrap up our modeling of the flow of the water through the pool for health agencies. It’s this process called CFD (Computerized Fluid Dynamics) that ensures the water we tested last summer that’s drawn into the pool flows in all the right places.
The first 2,000 sq. ft. rectangular version of the pool will be installed in the river at Pier 35 in May 2026 for final evaluation.
Public swimming will be contingent upon completing the pool’s final filtration testing at scale and the full build-out of the facility for safe public use once testing is complete.

This Is All Because of You

Thanks to you and the incredible support of our city and state partners, we are advancing this innovation so that everybody can have a safe way to reconnect to their natural environment. We’re not doing this alone—our Pier 35 community is a huge part of this story:

“This pool is not just about recreation—it’s also a powerful step toward environmental equity and public access to clean river water. Our community is honored to host this innovation and excited for the opportunities it will bring for health, education, and connection to the East River.”
— Trevor Holland, Two Bridges Resident & Founder of Friends of Pier 35

Frank Avila-Goldman, Chair of Friends of Pier 42, said

“For nearly a decade,
+ POOL has offered New Yorkers free swim programs and will provide a much needed waterfront connection to the underserved L.E.S”

“For far too long NYCHA affordable housing communities along the waterfront have contended with viewing the estuary of the East River as solely a means for transportation or as a warning sign for rising seas and climate change. For nearly a decade, + POOL has offered New Yorkers free swim programs and will provide a much needed waterfront connection to the underserved L.E.S. and greater outlying area. Communities get to learn how to better care for their waterways and help to make this a more livable city where nature and urban landscapes can coexist and thrive for generations.”
— Frank Avila-Goldman, Chair, Friends of Pier 42