The year is 1985 and it’s a hot summer day. Confused as to what to do, you and your friends from Camp Crusader walk to Roxie’s and get a warmed up piece of sourdough bread with mustard for 25 cents. Next, you head on over to the Balboa Pool to cool off and enjoy the day.

Being that this 1.1 million square foot park holds a pool in a neighborhood blooming with kids and adults eager to find somewhere to swim, it was a staple of many childhoods, such as Ernesto Castillo ’87, who learned to swim there along with his classmates because Riordan did not have a pool, as was originally planned when the school’s design was proposed.

In 2012, when the city passed the Clean and Safe Neighborhood Parks Bond and Housing Grant, three out of nine public pools in the city were granted multimillion dollar projects to renovate their spaces. With their $10.7 million grant, they began construction in November of 2016 and were slated to finish in the summer of 2018.

With construction entering the summer of 2018, they still lacked one important piece, approval of electric services, which is integral to a city project.

Finally, in June of 2018 the Recreation and Park Department announced they had reached a deal of approval for the electrical services to the pool and could continue towards the home stretch of the project with a new expected completion of fall 2018.

Soon, local residents will be able to appreciate the pool along with a new multi-use room. As for Crusader swimmers, the growing interest for a swim program has risen since the one man team placed in CCS in 2017, and with the new pool on the way, the future of Riordan swimmers is bright, according to Athletic Director Bob Greene.

Reuben Sablad ’19 said, “I’ve always loved the water and having a new pool nearby would boost support for a club or team at school.”

It’s okay to “test the waters” this time around, Crusaders.