In the Swim for 60 Years : Landmark Huntington Beach Pool Is Called Safe from Demolition

HUNTINGTON BEACH — There is something special about the early-morning light at the city’s indoor municipal pool.

It filters gently through large arched windows, shining on the hardwood floors and illuminating the glistening tile pool built in 1931 as a symbol of an earlier, more elegant age.

“You walk in and the water is still and you can see the light shining right through to the bottom,” said Dave Dominguez, the facility’s director. “People like the character of the building--it kind of talks to you.”

For more than 60 years, the pool and its accompanying gymnasium at Palm Avenue and 16th Street have provided generations of Huntington Beach residents--including about 125,000 last year--with the opportunity to participate in countless basketball games and swimming lessons.

That record was in jeopardy late last year when city officials, struggling to overcome a projected $5-million deficit, listed the facility for possible closure. While Bob Franz, deputy city administrator, insists that the place is no longer under consideration for demolition, the suggestion that it could be has raised the concerns of local residents bent on preserving their cherished landmark.

Shutting down the building “would be very sad,” said Jennifer Henline, 35, who frequents the facility with her 11-year-old daughter. “These kids need something safe that they can do. Busy kids are happy kids, and happy kids stay out of trouble.”

Closure “would be like tearing down the Huntington Beach Pier,” Dominguez said. “It’s part of downtown--people have grown up with it.”

The 20,000-square-foot building was opened on Oct. 15, 1931, in a ceremony attended by about 1,500 people--more than a third of the city’s then-population of 3,700. At the time, the facility--part of the adjacent Dwyer Elementary School and called the City of Huntington Beach Gymnasium and Plunge--was touted as including one of the few elementary school swimming pools in the country.

Two years later the structure survived the 1933 earthquake. At one point, it was used as a temporary classroom after officials drained the pool and laid down a plywood cover upon which school desks were placed.

In 1967, the Huntington Beach School District leased the facility to the city. And ever since then, Dominguez said, it has been used seven days a week, 12 months a year for swim lessons, family swims, basketball, volleyball, jazz exercise classes and athletic activities geared to senior citizens. “We live near the ocean,” Dominguez said, “so it’s important that children learn how to swim.”

Over the years, Dominguez said, a number of TV and film companies have found the ambience of the old building conducive to filming spots ranging from shoe commercials to episodes of the nostalgic TV series “The Wonder Years.” And because the floor of the gymnasium rests on springs, which give it some flexibility beneath pounding feet, he said, it attracts many professional basketball players who like to practice during the off-season with a minimum of damage to their knees.

Last May, local preservationists honored the building as an outstanding example of the Romanesque style of architecture popular in the 1920s. At the ceremony, many residents lined up in front of the structure to have their pictures taken.

“We picked it as exemplary for historical preservation,” said Jerry Person, chairman of the city’s historic resource board, which advises the City Council on historic matters. “It has a lot of charm and historic architectural elements that you don’t find today. It has class--when you go in there, you feel like it’s home.”

All of which contributed to the city’s decision to take the building off the chopping block for now, Deputy City Administrator Franz said. Closure would have saved $175,000 a year. But in the final analysis, Franz said, “we just didn’t feel that the budget shortfall required the closing of a major facility such as the city gym (and pool).” Given the reprieve, residents seem to be enjoying their pool and gym with the usual gusto. Some of that enthusiasm was evident during a recent Wednesday night family swim--attended by more than 50 people--for which each participant paid a $1 admission.

“Where else can you swim for a buck?” wondered Pat Montague, 52, who has been frequenting the pool for 23 years. “It’s unique. Both of my (grown) kids learned to swim here. It’s one of the few things left of old Huntington Beach.”