Excellent news: The Neptune Foundation's Floating Pool will be coming back to NYC this summer--and will head to the Bronx! Last summer, the pool-in-a-barge was docked in Brooklyn Heights, with tens of thousands of people enjoying the water and views. It's unclear where exactly the pool will reside this year, but the Post reports the pool "is expected to make the trip within two weeks" (from Bayonne, NJ--its winter getaway) to "open in mid-June." The......

New York City was amply represented during last night's National Design Awards at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. The Landscape Design award went to PWP Landscape Architecture, the firm that won the World Trade Center Memorial design competition (with Michael Arad). PWP Principal Peter Walker thanked Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Pataki and described the last four years as "difficult," presumably for the number of redesigns and challenges with moving the project forward, but he......

This Labor Day weekend is not just the unofficial last weekend of summer - it's the official last weekend to enjoy the city's beaches and pools. After Monday, the 14 miles of beaches and 52 outdoor pools (including the Floating Pool - which will be heading to the Bronx for the summer of 2008) will be closed. Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe says, "There’s no better way for New Yorkers to wrap up the summer than......

According to the Post, the Parks Department has confirmed that the "Floating Pool Lady" will be towed to another borough next summer. About 70,000 swimmers will have enjoyed the barge-borne pool on the Brooklyn Heights waterfront by the time it closes on Labor Day. Having opened during the rainstorms of July 4, it became a popular attraction reminiscent of the Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City. Its creator also sees it as a revival......

Today, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz will be kicking off another year of "Lighten Up Brooklyn" with a walk around Brooklyn Heights. "Lighten Up Brooklyn" was started a few years ago to encourage Brooklynites to lose weight and make their lifestyles healthier. And since he had stents put into his arteries last year, Lighten Up Brooklyn is a big deal to Markowitz. From his office's press release:Markowitz, who underwent a stent procedure last summer,......

After a commenter wondered if Brooklyn's Floating Pool really had a beach, another reader sent us some lovely photographs of the pool and beach. The Floating Pool is in a barge and has gangplanks that connect it to shore, where the beach is (in the above photograph, the barge is in the upper left corner). Thanks, PM! And we called to find out if the pool was fixed (the rains apparently got the best......

The Floating Pool opened at Brooklyn Bridge Park yesterday to visitors (a "decent sized" crowd showed up) . However, there are some lingering issues, thanks to yesterday's rainy weather. Reader Drew went to visit the pool today and wrote to us: Unfortunately, after being open only one day to the public, it was closed. The director, a very nice woman, explained that the rain from yesterday flooded some of the ballast tanks and tilted......

New York's own floating pool is opening tomorrow! The concept was that of Ann Buttenwieser, founder of the Neptune Foundation and a former manager of City Parks. The water on water can be found at Brooklyn Bridge Park, it's free and open from 11am to 7pm (the beach is open from 9am to 9pm) - seven days a week. The park's website tells us how to have fun whether you're floating or land-bound: "Take a......