Dallas, TX
Are Dallas community pools worth saving?
The Dallas Park and Recreation Board saved all nine community pools from the chopping block, at least for now, after city staff recently recommended their closure. But the reality is that city officials will probably have to close pools eventually. Most community pools are decades old, costly to maintain and severely underused.
The emotional attachment to the community pools is understandable. Many children learned to swim there, and Dallas families all over made memories in their neighborhood pools. There are also concerns about equity given that most of these pools are south of Interstate 30 in Black and Latino neighborhoods.
But the truth is that the community pools don’t see as much traffic as they once did. Their deterioration over the years has made them less appealing. And families and young people simply have more recreation options today than previous generations did.
The cold facts are what they are. A community pool like Martin Weiss, in west Oak Cliff, cost the city $139,069 last year, averaging 65 visits per day and generating less than $25,000 in revenue, according to Park and Recreation data. The Martin Weiss, Walnut Hill and Grauwyler pools — all built before 1955 — were closed this summer to repair leaks of thousands of gallons of water, Park and Recreation director John Jenkins said.
Finding parts for these pools is virtually impossible. The city is running out of salvaged parts from older facilities. If the pools run into structural issues, repairing them will be too expensive.
More modern Dallas facilities like The Cove at Crawford and the Kidd Springs aquatic centers, while not exactly money makers, do much better financially and generate stronger attendance numbers.
Right now, the Park Board is buying time. While the community pools will remain open only three days a week, per the Park Board’s recommendation, city staff will also update the Dallas Aquatic Master Plan. This formal assessment will help decide which pools should close permanently, which ones could be updated and which ones should be turned into spray grounds, Jenkins told us.
Rebuilding a pool can cost more than $4 million, but the city will have to wait several years for a new bond package or to find a corporate sponsor. Jenkins told us there is at least one private sponsor interested in investing in a community pool.
While the city decides what to do with its aquatic infrastructure, it should pursue strategic partnerships with school districts to ensure kids can learn to swim, even with fewer city-owned pools across Dallas in the future.
As things stand right now, some of these community pools will fail from old age. Keeping them open without substantial investment is a financial burden that could lead the city to redirect funding for other recreation programs toward pool repairs.
This is a case where the heart says one thing and the head says another. Lean times are here. Ignoring the facts, hard as they may be to swallow, will leave Dallas treading water.
We welcome your thoughts in a letter to the editor. See the guidelines and submit your letter here. If you have problems with the form, you can submit via email at letters@dallasnews.com
Jeff Kolb and Sam Gannon welcome Cowboys insiders Clarence Hill (All City Dallas) and Calvin Watkins (Dallas Morning News) for a hilarious breakdown of the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft. Giving insight, arguments, and plenty of laughs as two of the best Dallas Cowboys writers in the business go head-to-head on what Dallas should do next.
Dallas, TX
New video of Lake Dallas explosion draws focus on order decades ago to remove old plastic pipes
The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on X for the latest news.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
-
Politics13 seconds agoSoros-linked dark money network fuels Virginia redistricting push backed by national Democrats
-
Health6 minutes agoDeaths from one type of cancer are surging among younger adults without college degrees
-
Sports12 minutes agoStephen A. Smith makes brutal gaffe while talking about the Golden State Warriors
-
Technology18 minutes ago6 crypto scam scripts criminals use to steal your money
-
Business24 minutes agoTim Cook steps back as Apple appoints hardware chief as new CEO
-
Entertainment30 minutes agoEddie Murphy’s son and Martin Lawrence’s daughter welcome first child: ‘That baby gonna be funny!’
-
Lifestyle36 minutes agoBoF and Marriott Luxury Group Host the Luxury Leaders Salon
-
Politics42 minutes agoGovernor’s race wildly unpredictable two weeks before Californians receive ballots