Carmel Swim Academy (CSA) construction is complete, and members of the club couldn’t be happier.
The Carmel community recently raised over $700,000, and the Carmel Swim Club added another $635,000 to support the facility, located on the west side of the Carmel Total Fitness building. The academy opened in early July.
Carmel Swim Club Head Coach and CEO Chris Plumb says the Carmel community truly came through.
“Carmel Swim Academy would not be possible without the strong support of both our Carmel Swim Club and larger Carmel communities,” Plumb says. “The enthusiasm of donors to this project, and the additional investment by the Carmel Swim Club, demonstrate an unwavering commitment to creating a safer, healthier and stronger community through swimming.”
Plumb notes that opening this facility represents CSA’s mission, including their community-based, noncompetitive programs.
“Ongoing efforts for fundraising will continue as we work to grow critical, life-saving programs, including free swim lessons for children in families experiencing financial need,” Plumb says. “While drowning is one of the leading causes of injury-related death in young children, participation in formal swim lessons can reduce a child’s risk of drowning by 88%. Opening the doors of Carmel Swim Academy will immediately quadruple the capacity of our existing free swim lesson program, and additional donor support to grow this and other initiatives is important.”
Plumb says construction on the new facility started in 2021. CSA was inspired by the need for families in the area to have a safe place to learn lifelong skills such as water safety and swimming competency.
CSA’s training pool has six 25-yard swimming lanes, and there is also an attached shallow-water instructional area. The facility includes a mezzanine where parents can watch swim lessons, as well as family-friendly locker rooms.
“We firmly believe that everyone deserves to carry the life-saving skill of knowing how to swim,” Plumb says. “Our promise is to provide the highest-quality swim instruction from professional and friendly staff, making our community safer with each person who learns to swim. CSA is our community’s welcoming facility designed with your family in mind, offering exceptional programming for all ages and all abilities. With safety as our top priority, families can trust that children are safe while they have fun and grow their confidence in the water. Swimming is for everyone, and everyone belongs at CSA.”
Plumb says couldn’t be more excited about the facility.
“Personally, I’m thrilled this project is coming to fruition,” he says. “It’s been a dream of mine for more than a decade for Carmel Swim Club to have its own pool where we could introduce more young people to the sport of swimming, and more fully live out CSC’s mission – ‘Teaching excellence through swimming, for life.’ Our competitive hub remains at Carmel High School, while the new Carmel Swim Academy facility offers us a warm – literally, the water is much warmer here – inviting space to engage community members of all ages and abilities with the water.”
Plumb hopes to see some new faces at the academy.
“I am excited to connect more people in our community with best-in-class aquatics programs,” Plumb says. “Carmel Swim Academy harnesses our organization’s nearly 50 years of unparalleled expertise and excellence in the pool, and shares it more broadly with central Indiana. Come swim with us!”
CSA is open to people of all ages and includes space to teach more than 1,300 children per week. It has 55 hours of adult-focused programs planned per week. Several new options will also be offered including water aerobics, adult swim instruction and infant caregiver classes. CSA will also expand its free swim lesson program, offering up to 1,600 children free lessons each year.
To find out more about Carmel Swim Academy, visit the new facility at 830 City Center Drive in Carmel, call 317-575-8244, or check out carmelswimacademy.org. You can also check out their Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Own or work here?
