The Myth of YU’s Pool
It’s a hot summer day in late August, and move-in is underway at YU, with students hauling mini-fridges and yellow bins under the blazing sun. The air is heavy with humidity, but also with excitement — new beginnings, new faces and the buzz of possibility as a year of college starts. Laughter spills out from dorm rooms as roommates meet for the first time, and the RAs offer advice between sweaty trips to the elevator. After parents have left and orientation activities have ceased for the day, the new students are looking for something to do. YU has a pool, and after a hot day, their thoughts naturally turn to winding down at the pool before the remaining days of orientation. There’s one problem, though: The pool is closed, with no sign telling us when it will reopen.
That was eight months ago. As May rolls around and the heat begins to creep back in, the pool is still closed. After months of rumors, hopeful whispers and half-promises from the facilities department, the door remains locked, and the potential oasis has become a running joke among students. The same sun that beat down in August is back with a vengeance, and while campus blooms with spring energy, there is a growing frustration about the fact that the long-promised repairs are still “in progress.”
Problematic communication from the administrative end has been one of the main reasons for students’ frustrations. A WhatsApp chat was made specifically for updates on the pool, but after a month into the fall semester, the only message on the group was from the head lifeguard, Shneur Levy (YC ‘25), who said that he had no update as to when students could expect the pool to reopen. My brother, Dovid Bluth (YC ‘27), who is a lifeguard for YU, tried finding out on his own what the situation was, and he had this to say: “I went to the head of facilities, who told me to speak to athletics, as the pool is under their jurisdiction. The head of athletics [Gregory Fox] said that he was waiting for approval to use the pool from the head of facilities. Upon going back to the head of facilities, I was told they’ll look into it, before finally being informed that the pool could not be opened because they didn’t have proper lighting in the pool area. Once lighting was fixed in the pool area, they filled the pool, only to determine that it was leaking.”
In early December, excitement soared as Levy messaged everyone that the pool would be opening early the following week. It was about time, students thought with relief. However, our joyous expectations were soon crushed when Director of Athletics Gregory Fox posted on the chat that the pool opening would have to be delayed due to leaking, with no date on when we could expect it to actually open.
After not hearing anything for a few more months, another message was finally sent to the group. “Surprise! The Sauna and Steam Room will be opening,” it read, as if that made up for the lost pool. The “YU Pool Updates” chat has now turned into a sauna chat, as that is the only subject of discussion there. Gone are the days of eagerly waiting for the pool to open — those dreams have been crushed. An article was even published in the Purim edition of the YU Observer mocking the myth that is the YU Pool.
With summer just around the corner again, as students head away for the summer break, there are high hopes for the upcoming fall semester. Yet behind these hopes, persistent doubts remain in everyone’s minds as the students of Yeshiva University cannot help but wonder — will they ever get that swim, or is the YU pool destined to remain more myth than amenity?
Photo caption: Max Stern Athletic Center
Photo credit: Baruch Bluth
