The Richmond Municipal Natatorium, commonly known as The Plunge or The Richmond Plunge, is a historic swim center in the

Point Richmond Point Richmond, also sometimes referred to locally as The Point, is a neighborhood in Richmond, California, United States, near the eastern end of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, between Interstate 580 and the San Francisco Bay. History O ...

neighborhood of

Richmond, California Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was municipal corporation, incorporated on August 7, 1905, and has a Richmond, California City Council, city council.

. It was closed in August 2001 for seismic retrofitting and reopened in August 2010.Point Richmond plunges back into history
NBC Bay Area It now is back to a regular schedule.Official Site
City of Richmond

History

Promoted by the citizens of Richmond, The Plunge was created through a bond issue in 1926.
, The Plunge website At that time, it was a "state of the art" two-story building with an indoor warm water swimming pool double the size of an Olympic pool, a fountain, observation balconies, and an open truss ceiling reminiscent of the

Sutro Baths The Sutro Baths was a large, privately owned public saltwater swimming pool complex in the Lands End area of the Outer Richmond District in western San Francisco, California. Built in 1894, the Sutro Baths was located north of Ocean Beach, ...

in San Francisco. Richmond's population was about 20,000 then, grew to over 200,000 during the "war years" and is now about 110,000. Plunge

Over the years, the masonry building deteriorated, the hollow-clay-tile walls cracking after 76 years of deferred maintenance. Richmond Friends of Recreation (RFR) was organized in 1979 as a non-profit organization with the purpose of supporting community recreation programs, spearheaded a major rehabilitation of the pool equipment and repainting of the structure. The Plunge was further damaged in the 1989

Loma Prieta earthquake The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake occurred on California's Central Coast on October 17 at local time. The shock was centered in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County, approximately northeast of Santa Cruz on a section of t ...

. City voters rejected a bond measure to reinforce it in 1997. In November 1997, the City Council realized they did not have the funds to retrofit the building and determined they had no option but to close the Plunge permanently. However, even though it was unsafe, people were allowed to swim in it until August 2001, although they had to pass "Swim at your own risk" signs.News
, The Plunge website When the Plunge was slated for demolition, residents protested and RFR stepped in to work with the City in a unique Public/Private Partnership to raise the necessary funds to retrofit, upgrade and reopen the Plunge. The renovation planning process was complicated by the fact that the Plunge is located in the

Point Richmond Historic District The Point Richmond Historic District is the downtown area of Point Richmond in Richmond, California, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. History This historic district developed in the late 1890s when the San Francisco and San ...

, which is on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. This meant that officials had to ensure the renovation would not damage the site's historic value.

Restoration

Richmond Friends of Recreation established a "Save the Richmond Plunge Trust" under its tax-exempt status and raised over $154,000 in cash and in excess of $40,000 in kind donations from local business owners. It committed to an ambitious campaign of appeals to corporations, foundations, and individuals and a calendar of community events to recruit workers and raise funds. Architect Todd Jersey of Todd Jersey Architecture in Berkeley donated hundreds of hours to the Plunge restoration project, with the hopes of making the Plunge the most environmentally friendly public pool in the country. Jersey raised a portion of the roof to add windows, improving ventilation and light. Overall, the building has more than 170 windows, 132 of which will be able to open and close. The first phase of reconstruction began in August 2008.Reconstruction begins on Richmond's largest and oldest pool
, ''The Richmond Globe'', August 6, 2008. Accessed September 13, 2008. The Plunge is accessible from Interstate 580 and

AC Transit AC Transit (Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District) is an Oakland-based public transit agency serving the western portions of Alameda and Contra Costa counties in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. AC Transit also operates "Transbay" ro ...

line 72M Macdonald.Map of Stops for Line 72M
Line 72M schedule, AC Transit website, access date 19-02-2009

Restoration images (August 15, 2009)

Image:RichmondPlunge Exterior.JPG, Exterior scaffolding Image:RichmondPlunge Pool.JPG, Pool excavation Image:RichmondPlung Side.JPG, Side galleries

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plunge, The 1926 establishments in California Buildings and structures completed in 1926 Buildings and structures in Richmond, California Historic district contributing properties in California National Register of Historic Places in Richmond, California Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in California