Review: Metropolitan Pool & Fitness Center - Williamsburg, Brooklyn
This is the second nicest pool I’ve come across in the NYC rec centers, after Chelsea. There are only three lanes, but if you can find a time during the day when the pool isn’t crowded and the sunlight is streaming through the skylights, the Metropolitan Pool is beautiful place to swim. When it’s crowded (which is most of the time, as far as I can tell), it turns into a real shitshow.
I’ll be damned if I can figure out the proper lane etiquette here, but it feels like “every man for himself.” There will usually be a combination of slow and fast swimmers in the fast lane (most likely because the slower swimmers don’t want to deal with the abominably slow swimmers in the medium lane), making it difficult to keep a steady pace. The medium lane moves so slow that it’s tough not to pass people when I’m doing kick drills. Just forget about the beginner/slow lane - it’s clogged with so-slow-I-can’t-believe-they’re-afloat swimmers, so there’s no point in even going over there.
The weight room is small and usually crowded, like the pool. It’s got pretty much the same equipment you’ll find at any city rec center - dumbbells, benches, and some machines. While the pool is better, the weight room isn’t as good as the Tony Dapolito Rec Center, which was my home base for a few years. It’s worth noting that they’re really strict here - they won’t let you into the weight room without a towel and they won’t let you into the pool without a swim cap, so plan accordingly.
The showers and locker room are pretty terrible, which is par for the cours with city rec centers. I’m still always wary of catching bedbugs or footfoot from the dirty hipsters here.
Metropolitan Pool & Fitness Center
261 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11211
