Baltimore’s Greater Model Aquatic Center reopens in Poppleton after 5 years
Poppleton’s long-closed pool reopened with a six-lane lap pool, splash pad and family pool, restoring one of Baltimore’s 17 outdoor pools.
Poppleton got back one of its most visible neighborhood amenities Wednesday as the Greater Model Aquatic Center reopened after being closed since 2019. Mayor Brandon Scott and city officials cut the ribbon at the site, bringing a long-dormant public pool back into service for families in West Baltimore and for a citywide system that includes 17 outdoor pools.
The reopening carried weight beyond the ceremony because the pool had sat in disrepair for years. Baltimore first announced a new Greater Model Aquatic Center on Dec. 12, 2024, as an $8 million project funded through ARPA and tied to the city’s Rec Rollout initiative. City leaders framed it as part of a broader effort to replace aging pool infrastructure with new aquatics facilities, turning a closed site into a modern public asset.
The rebuilt center sits at 1051 W Saratoga Street, a couple of blocks from the Edgar Allan Poe House, and its design is built for more than lane swimming alone. The facility includes a six-lane lap pool, a family recreation pool with a beach-style entry, and a splash pad with eight interactive spray features. The project also added a new bathhouse, pool office and pumphouse, and construction ran from October 2024 through November 2025.
For Poppleton and nearby West Baltimore neighborhoods, the practical value is simple: a place to cool off, swim, and gather during hot summers, without having to leave the area. Sonia Eaddy, president of the community association, said she was proud to see the community come together for the project. Her reaction reflected the larger civic point of the reopening, which is not just that a pool was unveiled, but that a public space many residents had lost is back in use.
The Greater Model Aquatic Center now stands as a test of how Baltimore handles neighborhood-level recreation investment. In a city where outdoor pools can shape summer access for children and families, the reopening gives Poppleton a renewed piece of infrastructure and gives city officials a completed project they can point to in the effort to make public amenities more durable, usable and equitable.
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