Student Union pool not used

As spring gives way to summer and higher temperatures force skin pores to sweat, lackadaisical poolside inhabitants spread their towels and seek relief in the form of cool, chlorinated waters all over the Southland.

But not at the University Student Union pool.

White plastic tables with umbrellas and chairs sit empty, waiting for students. Cabanas emit no sounds of people changing into swimsuits or rustling through beach bags looking for suntan lotion. And the cool blue water of an unheated, 9-foot-deep pool lays calm like a recently cleaned sheet of glass.

"It's kind of sad they don't use it," said Daniel Luna, an engineering major at Cal State Long Beach and the games desk attendant at the Student Union. 

The pool is part of the Student Union, Luna said. CSULB students who want to use it need only present their student I.D. card.

The months of July and August bring most of the year's traffic to the pool, Luna said. There are several cabanas alongside the pool for changing into swimwear.

During the fall and spring semesters, the pool is open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. In the summer, the hours are noon to 6 p.m. Each student is allowed one guest, and there is no alcohol permitted in the pool area.
 

Cristian Vera Aleman/Summer Forty-Niner University Student Union  swiming pool.

The pool can be rented out for private parties, according to Arlene Oloresisimo, event coordinator for the Student Union. Student organizations do not have to pay; departments pay $50 for four hours while off-campus groups pay $100. Rental of the pool requires the group to provide a lifeguard and pay for a Student Union attendant to be there. Advanced notice of two to four weeks is required as well.

"Not many people rent out the pool area," Oloresisimo said. "But it's used a lot during the summer, especially by international students."