Some 14 years after we first reported on it – and following multiple challenges and false starts – the ambitious plan to create a self-filtering floating public pool in a New York City river is now finally under construction.
Named + Pool, the swimming pool will be anchored in NYC's East River and accessible from a walkway connecting to the shore. The idea behind its unusual shape is flexibility: it can be used as a children's pool, lounging pool, and for water sports and lap swimming simultaneously. Alternatively, two sections or even all four can be used at once.
As mentioned, it will feature self-filtering technology, which its organizers say will be used to clean the East River water, allowing bathers to swim in it safely. "No chemicals or additives" will be used to remove all the bacteria, toxins and any other nasty stuff. We've no in-depth details on how this will work, but schematic drawings depict UV lights, some sort of membrane filter and a strainer.
Though the plan is for + Pool to measure 9,000 sq ft (around 830 sq m), this initial version under construction will be a modest 2,000 sq ft (185 sq m), and will function as a proof-of-concept, to show everything works as it should. It will be based on a floating barge, which is currently being built in Mississippi and is being transported over to NYC's Pier 35.
"Today, Friends of + Pool announced it has completed the construction of a specialized barge at Bollinger Shipyard in Mississippi and released images of the barge under construction," explains Friends of + Pool's press release. "The vessel will be dry towed on a larger ABS-certified barge from the shipyard in Mississippi to New York this June 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 take approximately three weeks, traversing 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."
The original plan when + Pool received funding last year was for New Yorkers to be enjoying a cooling summer dip in mid-2025. However, you might want to hold off buying a new swimsuit just yet. This initial pool will now undergo testing in May 2026, with a publicly accessible unit ready sometime after that.
Source: Friends of + Pool
