Get Ready, Swimmable Cities Are Coming to the U.S.

Swimmers are increasingly using urban waterways to gain a distinctive view of cities from the water. Open water swim races, splash parties off piers, permanent swimming beaches, and plans for floating swimming facilities are expanding public access. Anti-pollution laws, major sewer system upgrades, and cleanup of contaminated riverbeds have made waterways safe enough for swimming again. The trend is supported by the growing popularity of open-water swimming, including Olympic recognition of a 10K event and wellness interest in cold-water immersion. Swimmable Cities, launched as a global grassroots movement in 2024, promotes the right to swim in urban waterways and highlights member organizations across many municipalities. The goal is for swimmability to become a mainstream part of urban planning and water management.

"There were guys who said, 'I came to be competitive and I ended up sightseeing,' says founder and organizer Doug McConnell. At last summer's Chicago River Swim, the first in a century in that iconic waterway of stunning skyscrapers and ornamented drawbridges, swimmers were captivated by one of the joys of urban swimming: a unique perspective on the city, from the water."

"From Chicago to New York, Baltimore to Portland, swimmers across America are taking to urban waterways, expanding public access to rivers and harbors through open water swim races, splash parties off piers, permanent swimming beaches, and even plans for a floating, river swimming pool off Manhattan. It's a movement decades in the making, as anti-pollution laws and billions spent in overhauling sewer systems and cleaning contaminated riverbeds made waterways safe again for swimming."

"Now, urban swimming advocates are getting a boost from Swimmable Cities, a global grassroots movement chartered in 2024 that's championing the right to swim in urban waterways. The alliance is putting a spotlight on 200-plus member organizations from more than 100 municipalities that have found creative ways of getting people safely into city waters, and it's inspiring others to take up the challenge."

"The trajectory that we're on is that swimmability will just become a mainstream part of urban planning and integrated water management, says Matthew Sykes, a cofounder of Swimmable Cities, which plans to pick a North American city for its next summit in 2027. Canada, the U.S., Mexico-I think these are all places where we're going to see a lot of growth, Sykes says."

Read at Outside