The Iowa City City Park Pool has been under construction since May 2025 and was planned to be finished by Memorial Day weekend, but has been delayed due to bad weather and supplier delays to mid-summer 2026.
City officials say unfavorable site issues, such as additional utility work in the park area and poor soil conditions, have complicated matters.
On Sept. 5, 2023, the Iowa City City Council voted to renovate the outdated pool. The finalized design was presented to the city council on Feb. 18, 2025, at a public hearing.
The new design will offer more activities for patrons, with a six-lane lap pool, multiple diving boards, a climbing wall, and a leisure pool with play equipment. The plan also aims to improve accessibility by incorporating ramps and stairs.
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The swimming areas are not the only aspects of the pool getting renovated. The bathhouse will be rebuilt, adding a year-long community room open for events and meetings, and outdoor bathrooms.
The total cost of the renovations is estimated to be $18 million. Iowa City Council Superintendent Brad Barker said the Iowa City Council received funding from the Capital Improvement Fund, a fund that has been set aside for large projects and long-term debt every five years.
According to the City of Iowa City, the Capital Improvement Plan for 2025-2029 total funding budget is $257,441,795.
According to the Iowa City Parks and Recreation, the City Park Pool was first opened in 1949 with a design from local engineer Edward “Ned” Ashton. The design included a large swimming pool, a diving board, a kiddie pool, and a bathhouse.
Barker said a classic factor of the property is the many oak trees that surround the pool.
While the former City Park Pool holds fond memories for many, after 70 years, the pool has shown signs of deterioration.
Peter Balestrieri, an Iowa City resident and curator of Popular Culture Special Collections at the University of Iowa, prefers newer pools to the aging City Park Pool.
“We live near City Park, and I think if the pool, the facilities, and everything else had been in better condition, we would have gone there more,” Balestrieri said. “We would drive to the parks and pools in Coraville, and we probably went there more than we ever went to City Park.”
The city council partnered with the public to construct a new design. On Oct. 27, 2023 the council held two public idea sessions, where more than 500 people attended, to gather public input.
There were also online surveys created for the public to vote on their favorite design. Max Radl, a 40-year Iowa City resident, participated in the online survey.
“I think they went with the design I had, hopefully, chosen. I thought it was very nice that the city laid it out in a way that was decently accessible and called for community input,” Radl said. “I was born in 1985, and it hasn’t changed. It’s time for an upgrade.”
Following the first meeting, in-person focus sessions were held on Nov. 13 and Nov. 14, 2023. Groups were made to represent various self-identified characteristics, including age, physical ability, and lifestyle. Participants were also sorted by how they planned to use the pool, such as lap swimming or staying in the shallow end with children.
“We value the feedback of the community to a great extent and want to get as many opinions and preferences as the community wants to share with us,” Barker said. “We take great strides in trying to reach a lot of different groups.”
Though construction has been delayed, the community will be able to use the pool for the remainder of the summer.
“We are looking forward to getting this pool open and welcoming the community,” Barker said. “It will definitely be a great way to beat the heat.”