Venetian Pool
Encyclopedia
The Venetian Pool is a historic U.S.
public swimming pool
located in Coral Gables
, Florida
.
quarry
abandoned in 1921 on 4 acres (16,187.4 m²). The pool was designed by architect Phineas Paist and completed in the spring of 1924. It got its name from the theme of a Venetian Lagoon
in Venice, Italy, complete with a Venetian style bridge and classic mooring posts. The Venetian Pool is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
.
The Venetian Pool has gone through several phases, in which a large additional island was created to allow Venetian style Gondolas to dock alongside, later removed; a high diving
platform was constructed above the grand waterfall and later torn down; and the pool has in the past been drained completely to permit the Miami Symphony to perform in it, taking advantage of the quarry's natural acoustic qualities.
daily from artesian wells, making it the largest freshwater pool in the United States
.
The pool ranges in depth from four feet to depths of over eight feet near the grand waterfall
, with a two foot kiddy pool near the lifeguard station; the station is atop a bridge leading out to an island with two full size palm trees on it. A grotto
, where natural water-filled caves stretch back over twelve feet into the hillside, is located across the pool from the island. There is a sandy sunning area for sunbathers and a café
area that is commonly used for weddings and receptions. A walking path surrounds the whole complex.
The pool received a massive historical restoration in 1989. The pool has recently had another major renovation which took eight months to complete (September 8, 2008 - April 30, 2009) and has since re-opened to the public again.
due to the massive amounts of fresh water it uses daily, raising concerns that the process of completely draining the pool every night and refilling it the following day was depleting the Floridian aquifer
s. In 1998 a solution was devised to drain the water back into the aquifer, using natural ground filtration, thus recycling the precious natural resource, while allowing the pool to maintain its fresh, clear water.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
public swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
located in Coral Gables
Coral Gables, Florida
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
History
The Venetian Pool was created in 1924 from an old coral rockCoral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
quarry
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
abandoned in 1921 on 4 acres (16,187.4 m²). The pool was designed by architect Phineas Paist and completed in the spring of 1924. It got its name from the theme of a Venetian Lagoon
Venetian Lagoon
The Venetian Lagoon is the enclosed bay of the Adriatic Sea in which the city of Venice is situated. Its name in the Venetian language, Laguna Veneta— cognate of Latin lacus, "lake"— has provided the international name for an enclosed, shallow embayment of saltwater, a lagoon.The Venetian Lagoon...
in Venice, Italy, complete with a Venetian style bridge and classic mooring posts. The Venetian Pool is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
The Venetian Pool has gone through several phases, in which a large additional island was created to allow Venetian style Gondolas to dock alongside, later removed; a high diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
platform was constructed above the grand waterfall and later torn down; and the pool has in the past been drained completely to permit the Miami Symphony to perform in it, taking advantage of the quarry's natural acoustic qualities.
Description
The pool occupies a shallow quarry displacing some 820000 gallons (3,104 m³) of fresh waterWater
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
daily from artesian wells, making it the largest freshwater pool in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The pool ranges in depth from four feet to depths of over eight feet near the grand waterfall
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
, with a two foot kiddy pool near the lifeguard station; the station is atop a bridge leading out to an island with two full size palm trees on it. A grotto
Grotto
A grotto is any type of natural or artificial cave that is associated with modern, historic or prehistoric use by humans. When it is not an artificial garden feature, a grotto is often a small cave near water and often flooded or liable to flood at high tide...
, where natural water-filled caves stretch back over twelve feet into the hillside, is located across the pool from the island. There is a sandy sunning area for sunbathers and a café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
area that is commonly used for weddings and receptions. A walking path surrounds the whole complex.
The pool received a massive historical restoration in 1989. The pool has recently had another major renovation which took eight months to complete (September 8, 2008 - April 30, 2009) and has since re-opened to the public again.
Sustainability
The pool has come under criticism from environmentalistsEnvironmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
due to the massive amounts of fresh water it uses daily, raising concerns that the process of completely draining the pool every night and refilling it the following day was depleting the Floridian aquifer
Aquifer
An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...
s. In 1998 a solution was devised to drain the water back into the aquifer, using natural ground filtration, thus recycling the precious natural resource, while allowing the pool to maintain its fresh, clear water.