Hours: 7 days a week from 11:00am to
2:45pm, and 4:00pm to 6:45pm • Season: July & August • Requirements: Must bring a lock, and only
a towel, shoes, book and water bottle are
allowed by the Pool • Admission: Free
One of the main recreational sites located in the
upper part of Central Park is the Lasker Pool.
Overlooking the Harlem Meer, it is transformed
into the Lasker Rink in the winter when it features
ice-skating and high school hockey. During the
summer months it is converted into one huge
swimming pool and when the heat is too much to
bear the laughter of local children can be heard
frolicing and splashing in its waters. Best of all,
admission to the swimming pool is free!
A range of amenities are also provided for the
swimmers, which include a substantial deck area,
locker facilities and a concession stand.
It replaced part of the Meer in the late 1960s,
when the wealthy Lasker sisters thought it would
be a wonderful philanthropic gesture to the
children of the community. Many at the time,
including the then current Parks Commissioner
Newbold Morris desperately fought the
construction, labeling a desecration of a sacred
space.
In 1966, the Pool opened to the public and the
beautiful landscaping linking the Loch to the Meer
would forever be changed and marred by this
monstrous site.
Yet, popular opinion defeated the opposition. Even
today the controversy continues. The Lasker Rink
and Pool still remains for many a horrible eyesore
and for others a place that brings great joy and
entertainment in the summer and winter months
to the often neglected north quarter of the Park.
