Earlier this month, New York governor Kathy Hochul announced an initiative called “NY SWIMS” that will bring new pools and swimming facilities throughout the state in an effort to improve water safety.
A $60 million grant program will provide 10 new pools in underserved communities while an additional $30 million will go toward pop-up pools during heat waves. The number of pools and beaches offering water safety instruction programs will more than double from seven to 17 this summer.
A floating, self-filtering pool in New York City’s waterways — first proposed more than a decade ago — will be fast-tracked in time for a public opening next summer, funded by $12 million from the state and $4 million from the city. The 9,000-square-foot +Pool, shaped like a plus sign with an Olympic-sized setup, will be tested this summer likely in a location attached to the riverbed off Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
Hochul also vowed to hire more lifeguards across the state. At the beginning of last summer, New York City only had about one-third of the 1,400 lifeguards required to keep swimmers safe.
Hochul unveiled the plan at a press conference with New York City mayor Eric Adams on Jan. 5, calling it “the largest statewide investment in swimming since the New Deal.”
The timing comes as drowning rates have reached record highs in New York, with the most recent data from 2021 revealing 230 deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drowning is the leading cause of death among children ages 1 to 4 and the second-leading cause of death for children ages 5 to 14.
“New York City is surrounded by water, folks, and our young people are not being taught how to swim,” Adams said. “And it’s becoming some of the leading causes of death through drowning or the inability to be able to swim.
“This is a moment that if you just miss it, you would think that it was just talking about a new pool or new innovation,” Adams continued. “No, it’s not. It is changing our mindset. Your ethnicity should not determine your destiny, and it should not determine what you should have in your community.
“And it’s a bold change,” he added. “It’s a different shift. Because historically, those who were in power had these things in their community, so they didn’t see the normalization of the denial of communities who were not having this.
A New York City survey in 2017 showed that one in three Black students cannot swim compared to just one in 10 white counterparts.
“I didn’t have a swimming pool in my community,” Adams said. “I had a water hose and hopefully the fire hydrant was turned on. That was my pool. Coney Island is the Hamptons for my community. Riis Beach is Martha’s Vineyard for my community. That is our Cayman Island.”
“NY SWIMS” arrives on the heels of legislation last September in which the city offered free swimming lessons for second graders.
Check out this testimonial from 13-year-old East Harlem resident Lucas Rosado on what the “NY SWIMS” initiative means for him personally:
I’m Lucas Rosado, a 13-year-old Latino from East Harlem. Some of my earliest memories are swimming here at the Children’s Aid Milbank Center. I started swimming when I was five and became competitive when I was seven. And one of my favorite things to do is race at swim meets. I always have fun competing, making new friends and improving with my team.
During the pandemic, that all came to a stop. In that long period when I couldn’t swim, I realized just how important swimming is. It’s a valuable skill that teaches values like community, sportsmanship, hard work, discipline and perseverance In Latino and Black communities like mine, I think expanding swim programs would be amazing.
In these communities, a reduction in obesity and drowning rates is greatly needed, and providing young people access to pools and lessons will help them experience the numerous physical, mental and social benefits that swimming has to offer. Programs that increase pool access and swimming education like the Children’s Aid are great for building strong and healthy communities.
Swimming is also a social sport that allows you to meet new people and learn valuable skills like sportsmanship and teamwork. People who started as toddlers just learning how to swim eventually grow up to be coaches as adults all while maintaining lifelong friendships.
That comfort, shared by all ages and backgrounds here at the pool, is something more people need to experience, and I’m confident that Governor Hochul’s announcement will help achieve that for all communities. I hope everyone in New York can get a swimming pool near them and learn to love being in the water just like I do.