The Plunge Gave El Segundo Its Evening Swim Back

The best thing about the reopened Plunge may be its hours. On the city's current fall schedule, all public swimming after 3 p.m. on a weekday happens at 219 W. Mariposa Avenue. With seasonal Hilltop Pool done for the year, El Segundo's fall schedule has two public pools, and they split the week between them. The El Segundo Wiseburn Aquatic Center on Grand Avenue covers the early mornings and Sundays. The Plunge covers the evenings, the family rec nights and Saturday afternoon. If you swim after work or after school, your week now runs through a building the WPA put up in 1940.

Grand Avenue Shuts Down by Mid-Afternoon

Start with the Aquatic Center's schedule, because it explains why the Plunge matters so much. The El Segundo Wiseburn Aquatic Center at 2240 E. Grand Avenue has two pools. The Competition Pool runs from 6 a.m. every day, with some days split around a morning break, and its last lap swim block ends at 3 p.m. every day of the week. The four-lane Instructional Pool is done by 3 p.m. on weekdays too, and one of the city's two aquatics pages lists it closing at 2 p.m.

So the Aquatic Center works well for anyone who can swim at dawn or in the middle of the day. It has no public swim for the hours after a workday or a school day. The Plunge covers those hours.

What Came Back on Mariposa

The building on Mariposa reopened with a grand opening on Saturday, June 6, 2026, after seven years closed because of maintenance problems, as the Daily Breeze reported. The paper also reported that staff had spent more than a decade patching leaks to keep the pool running. Renovation broke ground in 2024, and the pool was first expected back in 2025.

The money behind it came from a few places. According to the El Segundo Herald, the City Council approved a $14 million renovation in August 2023, paid for mostly through the city's Capital Improvement Program. A community campaign set out to close a $5 million gap. By the Herald's November 2024 report, the city and South Bay Sports, Health and Recreation had raised nearly $2 million toward that target.

The Herald's account of construction shows how deep the work went. Crews demolished the lobby wall, the east-side bleachers, the locker-room slabs, and the old pool equipment and piping. They also did seismic work on the roof and framed a new terrace. The Daily Breeze listed the finished upgrades as code and Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, new mechanical, electrical, plumbing and aquatics systems, and architectural improvements to the building.

The front of the building stayed the same. Living New Deal, which documents Depression-era public works, records the building as a 1940 WPA project with bas-reliefs of a male and a female swimmer at the entrance, attributed to the sculptor Merrill Gage. The Herald reported that the redesign keeps the building's Art Deco facade while bringing the interior up to current building standards.

The building's official name honors the man who made it famous. Urho Saari started the city's swimming program, ran the Plunge, and coached swimming and water polo at El Segundo High School. The Daily Breeze notes that he trained more than 30 water polo Olympians, was named National Water Polo Coach of the Year in 1964, and joined the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame in 1976.

The Fall Week, Hour by Hour

Here are both pools' public lap swim hours side by side, taken from the fall schedule on the city's Aquatics Facilities page. The Plunge's "Big Pool" is 25 yards and kept at 78 to 81 degrees.

Every weekday evening, the only public pool open in El Segundo is the Plunge. On Monday, Tuesday and Thursday that time goes to lap swimmers. On Wednesday and Friday it goes to rec swim.

Evenings Belong to Mariposa

Lap swimmers get nine evening hours a week at the Plunge: 6 to 9 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Friday's lap swim also runs late, to 5 p.m., two hours past the Aquatic Center's last lap swim block.

Rec swim is the other half of the evening schedule. On Wednesday from 6 to 9 p.m. and Friday from 5:30 to 9 p.m., the Plunge opens both its Big Pool and its Small Pool for recreation swim. Saturday has a third session from noon to 3 p.m., right after morning lap swim ends. That makes three rec swim blocks a week, and two of them come after dark in fall and winter.

The city has said more programming is coming. The Daily Breeze reported that the reopening comes with an expanded aquatics program for all ages, including swim and fitness classes, adaptive programs and community events. For lessons, the city currently sends families to its registration portal or the aquatics desk at 310-524-2738.

Mornings and Sundays Still Run Through Grand Avenue

The Plunge doesn't replace the Aquatic Center. It is closed Sundays, and on weekdays its lap swim starts at 9 a.m. If you want to be in the water before work, the Competition Pool on Grand opens at 6 a.m. every day of the week. It is also the only public pool open on Sunday. The Facilities page lists Sunday lap swim from 6 to 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the program page lists it straight through from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the Instructional Pool there has a Sunday rec swim from noon to 3 p.m.

On the Facilities page schedule, Saturday morning is the only time both pools open together, at 6 a.m. The Plunge then runs lap swim straight through to noon. The Aquatic Center breaks between 8 and 11 a.m. If you want a late Saturday morning swim, Mariposa is the one that stays open.

Water aerobics for adults 18 and older is listed at the Instructional Pool. That's the 2-foot to 4-foot-6 pool also listed at the Aquatic Center, with classes Monday through Friday at 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and on Sunday from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Sign up under the "Pool Programming" tab on the city's registration portal.

Getting In the Door

Swimming in El Segundo is cheaper with a Rec ID, and lap lanes work a bit differently than they did at older public pools. Here's how it works this fall:

1. Get a Rec ID. The resident rate requires a current Rec ID, which takes two forms of proof of El Segundo residency. Parents registering children also need their own current Rec ID to get the resident rate.
2. Know the fees. An adult lap swim costs $5 with a Rec ID and $8 without one. Seniors, youth and military pay $3 with a Rec ID and $6 without. The city lists the same prices for the Plunge and the Aquatic Center. Lap swim is for ages 9 and up.
3. Reserve a lane or drop in. Reserved lap lanes are booked by the hour and hold two swimmers at most. Drop-in lanes have no cap. You can book in person, by phone at 310-524-2738, or online on the city's rec.us portal under "Court & Lane Rentals."
4. Call before an early Wednesday. The city's two aquatics pages don't agree on Wednesday mornings at the Plunge. The Aquatics Facilities page lists lap swim from 9 a.m. The Aquatics program page lists 6 a.m. Neither page is dated, so check with the aquatics desk before a dawn swim.

The reopening itself showed how much people wanted the pool back. The city's grand opening on June 6 ran from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a ribbon cutting, music and self-guided tours. Two ticketed "First in the Pool" sessions were capped at 125 swimmers each. Residents with a Rec ID could claim one free ticket. This fall, the busiest times are likely to be the 6 p.m. lane on a Tuesday or the Friday rec swim after school.

A pool that stays open into the evening is one of the reasons people love living near Recreation Park, and the details of a neighborhood like that are what we pay attention to. If you're weighing a move within El Segundo, or curious how a few blocks closer to Mariposa Avenue would change your week, the Sikola Real Estate Team is glad to walk through it with you. Let's Talk Real Estate.