I live close enough to Burgess Park that I could be going to the pool there. I used to! It's…read moreconveniently within long-walk distance! ...but like, why. I would honestly rather drive all the way to Belle Haven.
So, do me a favor, everyone, and don't go here. Not because it's bad. It's really good. But that's why, right? It's not crowded ever, I've never once had to share a lane, I usually don't have to share the ENTIRE rec pool. I like it that way, alright? Sharing is caring and all but I don't wanna share.
(I like the rec pool, because I've got chronic pain and mobility issues, and the warmer water plus steps or ramp to get in are both really helpful for that.)
Buuuuuut I do want it to stay open, so. I GUESS you can also come to the (public) pool (that I don't own). Begrudgingly.
Honestly it's nicer even than the time I somehow got a month of free membership to a private sports club. The single, solitary complaint I've ever had was that someone(s) misses the urinal in the men's room so badly that it smelled like, well, badly missed urinal. You know. And so I dropped off a comment card and they fixed it and even emailed me to let me know. Hello? That's cool, I wasn't expecting much after my experiences with Burgess Pool.
(I want to love you, Burgess, but you still haven't been resurfaced and you're still bad to walk on barefoot. It's been almost ten years since I first said that. Come on, man. I know what the economy is like, but be so for real.)
Like when I say "the locker room is nice" what I want you to understand is that it's individual stalls, with curtains (unlike Burgess. Come on, Burgess, you are losing in every bracket!) and granite surfaces and good water pressure and it actually gets properly hot. It's always clean aside from the single Pee Stank Incident, and it's not dripping wet all over. It's even tastefully indirectly lit? You can tell that Facebook money went into it, lmao.
The pools themselves are great too. Warm, level with the pool deck, clean, clear, just really pleasant to swim in. Some flower or another around the pool area smells like honey and it's a little unreal. The deck is new and clean, with lots of seating and shade umbrellas. A lot of the parking is shaded with solar panels. The community center has great vibes too, and a weight room I haven't tried out but it looks nice and never too busy.
But like, don't go here, okay? I'm letting you see my hidden gem but don't touch it. However. If you do, please, for the love of God, don't miss the urinal. If you mess this up for the rest of us I WILL find you.