Winter Swim Pool Rental Selection Process & Criteria
Pool rental space for the winter swim program is allocated based on the following selection criteria and process.
- Only teams with at least 80% membership of Fairfax County residents will be allowed to rent pool space.
- All teams submitting their application by the deadline will be given priority consideration. All applications received after the deadline will receive secondary consideration, meaning they will only be awarded space once all priority bids have been awarded space.
- Because of the high demand on limited space, teams will only be awarded a maximum of four (4) lanes for one (1) hour during the priority consideration phase. During the secondary selection phase, past due bids and request for additional lanes space will be considered. Fairfax County Park Authority reserves the right to accommodate request that best fill the space available during the secondary consideration phase.
- During the priority selection phase, bids are ranked by lane hours requested with teams requesting the maximum rentable lane hours receiving priority. All teams requesting the maximum rentable lane hours will be placed into a lottery and awarded lanes in the order in which they are pulled from the lottery. The lane space awarded will be based on the availability of a team's first, second, and third choice at the time of selection. This process will continue for all priority bids received until the team with the lowest lane hour requested is awarded space last. The Maximum Rentable Lane Hours is calculated by: Number of Practice Days Offered X Four (4) Lanes X One (1) Hour = Maximum Rented Lane Hours. Lane Hours Requested is calculated by: Number of Practice Days Requested X Number of Lanes Requested X One Hour = Lane Hours Requested. “No Swim” days designated by the park authority do not affect the strength of your bid, however any additional no swim days designated by your team do reduce your lane hours requested and thus the rank of your bid.
- No preference is given on past rentals. Your team is not guaranteed the same space and time each year.
- Teams owing rental fees from a past season will not be considered for rental space until all outstanding fees are paid.
- FCPA reserves the right to completely fill a block of time with rentals before moving to the next time slot.
Additional Information:- Once awarded lane space teams are financially obligated to the awarded lanes.
- Because lane space is awarded based on total of lane hours requested, we do not allow any alterations of your bid once lane space is awarded. This includes adding no swim dates, reducing the number of lanes requested or completely dropping a lane rental. Alternatively a team can submit a request via email to the Pool Contract Coordinator (FCPApoolcontracts@fairfaxcounty.gov) by August 15, to “shop” any unneeded lanes to other teams. However the team will remain financially obligated to the lanes, unless another team picks up the dropped lanes. The Pool Contract Coordinator reserves the right to accept or deny this request. No requested will be considered after August 15.
- Any team that defaults on a lane rental will not be allowed to rent lanes until the defaulted payment is received. Additionally that team will only be given secondary lane consideration for the next rental year they request space.
- There will be holidays and blackout dates for specific days and times for individual pools due to FCPA programs. However, if your team does not want to swim on a specific date, please list it as a "No Swim Date." Do not assume the pool will be closed for specific holidays. All Rec Center pools will be unavailable for winter swim on the following holiday weekends during the 2026/27 Winter Swim season:
- November 28-29, 2026
- December 26-27, 2026
- January 2-3, 2027
- March 27-28, 2027
- We guarantee the use of awarded lane space, but not the location of the lanes in the pool. The Aquatics Director will have final say of assigned pool space.
- Teams that share coaches and request space to accommodate their coach's schedule for several teams must be aware we will make every attempt to accommodate but we will not guarantee placement.
- As in the past, Fairfax County High School swim season will run from November to February. In general, High School swim meets are held on Friday nights, December through February, with the exception of one Saturday night meet in December. In the event of inclement weather on a Friday, make-up dates for these meets are scheduled for three Saturday nights in January. The information relating to H.S. Swim Meets, and U.S.A. Meets should be available prior to final preparation of your contract for the season.
- As in the past, the FCPA encourages, but does not require each team to obtain liability insurance for their practices.
- The "beach areas" are not available for rent.
