City launches free swim pilot program, eliminating fees at Walnut Creek Pool this summer

Austin is moving forward with a pilot program aimed at reducing pool fees as a way of increasing access this summer. 

The city will eliminate fees entirely at Walnut Creek Pool in North Austin and offer two free days at Bartholomew Pool near the Mueller Development and Garrison Pool in South Austin. Bartholomew Pool’s first free day was Wednesday, June 19, and the second will take place on Wednesday, July 10. Garrison Pool will be free on Tuesday, June 25, and Tuesday, July 23.

The program comes out of a resolution sponsored by City Council Member Alison Alter that stressed the importance of providing parkland and recreation opportunities in historically underserved areas as a critical component of physical and mental health. The resolution notes that some fees were waived in 2023 due to record-breaking heat, and the parks department’s own plans document that outdoor pools provide important health benefits during ever-increasing heat waves and “help ensure that all children have an opportunity to learn how to swim.”

“As our city experiences increasingly hot summers, I authored the resolution directing the City Manager to pilot reduced-entry fees or free swim days at several pools this swim season,” Alter told the Austin Monitor. “This resolution built off of my previous work with Austin Parks and Rec and Go Austin/Vamos Austin last summer to eliminate all City pool fees (except Barton Springs) during the August/September heat wave, when the summer swim season had ended and most free pools had closed.

“We designed the pilot to be data driven, focused first on those most impacted by the heat, and informed by pool safety requirements,” she continued. “PARD will use this summer’s attendance data at these pools to help inform future City decisions about pool accessibility in the face of climate change. I am pleased with the implementation so far, and I look forward to reviewing the impacts of the pilot at the end of the summer.”

According to a June 7 memo from Parks and Recreation Department interim Director Angela Means, “This pilot will improve PARD’s understanding of the effects fee changes have on pool attendance. Understanding how attendance might change at these pools will allow PARD to alter or adjust any operational safety measures. Maintaining the highest public safety standards at all aquatic facilities remains of utmost importance, regardless of attendance increases or changes.”

The parks department will track attendance per day at the pools this summer and intends to report on “the total budget impact of the pilot period,” according to the memo. PARD will also report on “any recommendations on adjustments in safety operations or staffing levels to implement this pilot permanently.”

The city’s Parks and Recreation Department operates 34 pools each summer and 10 splash pads. Of those, 26 pools are free to the public (though the addition of Walnut Creek Pool through the pilot will raise that number to 27) and all 10 splash pads are free.

Park officials will provide an update on the pilot by Oct. 18, 2024.

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