Exploring possibilities for a Shoreline pool facility

The site of the old Shoreline Pool was leveled and planted with grass.
A picnic shelter will be built there, next to Shoreline Park
Photo by Gidget Terpstra

The City of Shoreline is beginning to explore the possibility of placing a ballot measure before Shoreline voters to build, run, and maintain a public indoor pool facility. This work builds on years of public input. Residents have expressed interest in a new pool that meets the community’s needs while also not overburdening taxpayers.

King County built the former Shoreline Pool in 1971. When Shoreline became a City in 1995, we took control of the pool. We maintained and ran the pool for more than two decades. However, in its later years, it became clear that the pool was reaching the end of its useful life. Maintenance costs increased and it became harder to make the repairs on the aging equipment.

In anticipation of eventually needing to close the pool, we conducted a feasibility study on building a new pool facility. We also sought community input and heard from hundreds of community members through development of the 2017-2023 Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Plan and other outreach. Most people expressed interest in a new pool facility.

Through a concept design process that involved input from a resident advisory committee, the City Council decided to place a Parks and Pool bond measure on the November 2019 ballot. The bond measure asked Shoreline voters if they wanted to fund a new 75,000 square foot pool, recreation, and community center, in addition to funding for redevelopment of four parks. Although the measure received a majority “Yes” vote (54%), it did not receive the required 60% “Yes” vote needed to pass a bond measure.

Following the failed bond measure, the Council made the difficult decision to close the Shoreline Pool in the fall of 2021. However, in 2020 with the COVID 19 pandemic, we had to suspend Pool operations. This lead to permanently closing the Pool earlier than anticipated in the fall of 2020 (a year earlier than scheduled). This left a gap in access to pool activities for Shoreline community members.

The cost of the proposed facility in 2019 was a significant concern for many residents. Many asked the City to look at ways to bring down costs including through partnerships. The City has spent several years exploring potential partnerships with neighboring cities and organizations to see if a larger joint pool project would work. Unfortunately, due to a variety of factors, we concluded that a partnership wouldn’t work. If the community wants a new pool, the City needs to build it itself.

In March 2024, the City Council directed staff to explore designing a new pool-only facility. The new facility would focus on a lap pool and warmer water recreation spaces. It would be smaller in overall size than the facility proposed in 2019. 

The new facility would not include sport courts and other gym-type recreation spaces. Spartan Recreation Center would continue to be the City’s primary recreation center, with its two gymnasiums, weight room, and several recreation multipurpose spaces. The proposed pool-only facility would be located in the same place as the proposed 2019 facility, north of City Hall.

Exploring a pool-only facility will include creating an initial design, managing a community advisory committee process, seeking public input, and developing costs and impacts to property taxes. The City Council would then decide on whether to place a measure on the ballot for voters to consider.