Next summer, three of the nine Dallas community pools will not be opening.
The city is shutting down the Jaycee Zaragoza pool in West Dallas, the Glendale pool in East Oak Cliff and the Grauwyler pool near Love Field, according to John Jenkins, director of the Park and Recreation Department.
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The decision was based on new pools coming to replace two of them and the other sits next to a sprayground and less than three miles from an aquatic center.
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Decommissioning the city’s nine community pools was part of the city’s 2015 aquatic master plan, which called for developing newer aquatic facilities to replace the functionally obsolete community pools.
All nine community pools are smaller, neighborhood-based pools that are more than 50 years old and provide affordable access to open swim, swim lessons and youth programming.
Debate over when and how many pools should be closed has been growing over the past year.
District 14 council member Paul Ridley presented an amendment Wednesday to close four pools during the council vote on the $5.2 billion budget for the next fiscal year.
Residents of Martin Weiss Park in West Oak Cliff, wearing purple T-shirts, spoke out against the closure of their pool. They emphasized the importance of the aquatic programs provided for local seniors.
District 1 Council member Chad West said the pool in his district had more attendance than at three aquatic centers. The Martin Weiss Pool in District 1 is one of the most well-attended pools with 5,092 visitors this year, compared to Glendale Pool, which saw 1,042 visitors.
“And that shows there is a need for these community pools in these areas, especially in the south,” West said. “A lot of people don’t have private pools. This is where you go to swim. This is a community pool used by seniors and kids.”
Ridley’s amendment failed, but it sparked a conversation between members opposed to the early closure, arguing that the savings were minimal compared to the community value of pools.
The closures for this fiscal year will save about $200,000.
What will happen after the closure?
Three pools will be decommissioned as part of the city’s budget, but plans are in the works for these facilities.
In 2024, residents approved a nearly $1.3 billion bond package that included pool funding.
The Jaycee Zaragoza Pool in District 6 received approximately $4.5 million to build its new pool, replacing the facility built in 1974.
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Jenkins said construction is set to begin in 2026 for the new pool.
District 8 in southern Dallas allocated about $4 million for the construction of a new aquatic center in the Singing Hills Recreation Center, which was proposed during the 2015 master plan update. The center is about two miles from the Glendale Pool, but it is located in District 4.
The Grauwyler pool sits next to a sprayground and about three miles from the Bachman Aquatic Center.
The city is waiting for an update this fall to its aquatic master plan, which is expected to provide more guidance on community preferences and replacement options for community pools.
Besides the nine community pools, the city operates nine aquatic centers, which include a variety of play features, such as lazy rivers, toddler pools and open swimming pools. The department also operates 17 spraygrounds, an indoor pool and a beach water park.
For more information, visit the city’s aquatic department website.