Asser Levy Recreation Center

Update!
Asset Levy no longer has gender discriminating ladies night or men’s night. I recieved confirmation from the manager of Asser Levy, who advised that this policy is no longer in place. Feel free to arrive at all posted fitness room hours.
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Original Review: 2 stars
Did you know that Asser Levy Rec Center has gender discrimination practices? On Tuesdays, it has women’s fitness night from 8 to 9:30PM and on Thursdays it has men’s’ fitness only nights from 8 to 9:30PM. The rules are not listed on Rec Center schedule, so women and men who go on these nights are harassed and kicked out! Appalling!

Wonderful place with full facilities, nice people and best price! Help me a lot in finding back my confidence and health!
Very grateful, enjoyable and unforgettable!
Best,
Willa

This review is solely for the weight room of Asser Levy, because I have never used the pool!
If you’re looking for a fancy gym with bright lights, pumping music and top-​of-​the-​line machines, you will not like Asser Levy. However, it really does have everything you need — Tons of cardio machines considering the size, dumbbells (although mostly unlabeled and some are missing), barbells, squat rack, leg press, smith machine, a couple cable machines, lat pulldowns, leg extension, leg curl, abductor/​adductor machine, incline decline and flat bench, and a few other machines. There is a stretching sections and they also have foam rollers and some other fitness equipment (mats, steps).
Ummm, considering the price of this place, that is an amazing variety of equipment, and if you can’t get a good workout from that, stop being a diva!
Like most gyms, Asser Levy has it’s «rush hour“s (I would say about 5−6pm on weekdays) where you may have to wait to use the machine you want or hunt for a good spot to set up. Aim to get to the gym in the early mornings if you can!
Not only does Asser Levy have all the equipment you need, but it also has an amazing community. I like to say people here have «no filter» — they will come up to you and say whatever they feel like saying, and for the most part, everybody is very supportive and friendly. This gym is full of really strong and impressive lifters, but none of them are stuck up jerks. There is no better motivation to go to the gym than to be surrounded by people who are always happy and helpful.
You may not be impressed by the aesthetics of Asser Levy when you first come here, but it will grow on you and you will start to have fun meeting some very interesting/​quirky people!

I’ve been going here for about 5 years now and this place is a total joke. It’s not a gym, it’s an insane asylum!
–90% of the staff are rude and talk down to you. Even the guy that reads the bible every day is an ass, you would think he would be a bit more nicer to his fellow man/​women. Out of the 90%, I’ve never seen them do anything other bother people with new rules they make up daily or bitch about something completely trivial.
–it is the dirtiest «gym» I’ve ever been to. You would think with all the time most of them have doing nothing all day they could clean something… anything!
–equipment, well, if it breaks don’t expect to see it again for 2 – 3 years or ever again.
–men’s locker room is great if you want to be surrounded buy homeless in the winter that set up camp, no soap to wash your hands most of the time, people flinging athletes foot skin all over the place, I could go on forever but god forbid you wear the wrong workout attire (whatever that is).
–if your handicapped in some manner your pretty much screwed. Quite a few steps to get into the building and many more to get to the men’s locker room.
–never been to the outdoor pool but I’ve seen plenty of people that come in to use it, just make sure your ready for a TSA pat down. The staff that oversees this to let everyone in treats people like they think you’re on the no fly list.
–the only reason I tolerate this place in because it’s very close to my work and I go during my lunch… that is the ONLY reason.
Ps. You might want to update your shots at the doctors office before coming in

Yes it’s a public gym. No the equipment is not brand new and constantly replaced. But you can join for a year for less than a month at Equinox or even health and racquet club… Now we’re talking.
Weights are weights but think of what you can do for $ 100 a month extra!
It’s almost never crowded and the people here are quite the characters. Most of the locals are friendly and outspoken and everyone is very nice. It’s definitely a more social gym than one where the white collar ibankers scowl as the push past you rushing for an empty machines.
As far as machines, they aren’t brand new but they also work. They have something for every muscle and all aerobic machines. I never have to wait for anything so there’s no problems.
They have an indoor swimming pool for members only and a smal selection of classes including cycling. They also have table tennis, billiards, foosball if you just want to pass time or relax after a workout.
Nice park too!

Reviewing «Learn to Swim.» My son has attended the learn to swim program on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Leonard is amazing with the kids, although my son normally LOVES water… He’s been panicking during these classes. Leonard has continued to move the class along, while it making me not feel terrible about my hysterical toddler. He makes his way to every child and offers great advice. He is a natural with the kids! I o my wish we were able to get a picture of the kids during swim lessons!!! All in all a great program. The building is old, but clean. There are a ton of young employees who are courteous and seem to care about doing a great job.

I have being coming to this gym on and off for the last 15 years. I must say it is nice to see the same faces at the gym. I wast very disappointed by the odor in the gym and how dirty it is. What hell is the manager of this place us doing. You don’t need an army to use a wet rag and clean the machines and floor!!!

I went there to swim in the indoor pool, which was fine. The woman’s dressing room is so dirty, there is just duct tape covering any «holes» or broken things. There are roaches or water bugs, whatever you want to call them, it’s unsanitary. The ceiling looks like it may cave in at some point, huge leak stain.
There are no hair dryers.
It is $ 150 for the year for people over 18 & there is a senior discount. I don’t care how cheap this is, It’s time to renovate this place! The other recreation centers are a lot nicer than this one.

I would’ve lowered the rating to a 1, but since it is a free rec center for people aged under 18, i cut the place some slack. The place inside is very dirty, my friend had brought me there so we could go lift some weights, and to hit the gym. When you walk in, you are immediately greeted by a strong scent of chlorine. Although, this is common, if you do not like this particular scent, you might not want to go.
The Caucasian lady working in the front desk (works on fridays 3 PM?) who provided me my ID card was very nice. Her service was splendid, and she showed no sign of anger. She helped me through the process and was overall a helpful person.
When I went into the weight room, I was greeted by weary weights, dirty floors, and the scent of body odor. The body odor is common, but c’mon, atleast get a damn glade or something in there. During our workout there was a woman talking to herself, and talking to other people (including me) randomly. I was told that she always talked to herself, and she was kind of cuckoo for a lack of a better term. After our workout, while we stretched a saw a centipede crawl around, and immediately I left. If the place would’ve been cleaner, it would be fine. However, it is a free rec center for people younger than 18.

Playground with a track & field attached just off Stuyvesant Cove Park, pretty well-​maintained and dealing with a rough winter well.

The Asser Levy rec center is less crowded than many of the NYC rec centers. For $ 75/​6mo or $ 159/​12mo, it’s a great value for a place to swim. The indoor pool is clean and not crowded, even during adult lap swim times. The only fault is that locker rooms are pretty dirty, with some interesting people hanging out in there.

I would never go here again but I run by it several times/​wk and always see mice/​rats scrurrrying around. Recently there’s a sign that says rat poison in area or something to that affect. Very dirty. And an update to last year when I did go, the «workers» are so rude. 2 of them bumped into me when they were removing the divider thing from the pool and said nothing. They also dragged that divider over my bare foot. Obnoxious. Lastly, Fresh Direct items are stored here and the truck is ALWAYS parked outside. I think if there’s that many mice running around, then they are sure to get into the fresh direct stuff. I suppose it’s all sealed but do you really want that many mice on your food? I don’t order fresh direct but always feel bad for the people getting those deliveries because the conditions where they are is so disgusting. Eat at your own risk indeed.

I’ve been going to this center for almost 40 years. As a kid, I’d go to the pool and now I use the gym. It’s $ 150 per year and that allows you to use all city gyms and pools. The gym is well equipped and clean. The people who work here are very polite and helpful. There are classes for adults, like yoga & cycling, and swimming classes for children. This is probably one of the best bangs for your buck in NYC.

Only reviewing the indoor pool ‘Learn to Swim’ Saturday program for kids. Throughout the year the city offers free swim classes for kids and adults. I personally have not taken advantage of this program, but my kids have. They absolutely love it! They look forward to this every week I must say, my kids who were once scared of going near the water are now fearless little dolphins, all thanks to the effortless teachings by their team of instructors!
Again, I haven’t tried out any other part of the Rec Center, but if the remaining entities of this place is half as good as their Learn to Swim program, I’m sold!

$ 150 a year for a lap pool and a gym in New York is unbeatable. And that covers ALL city pools.
I would never bother coming to the pool except during lap hours. During that time, the water is clean and there are no homeless people wandering around like the other reviews say. There’s always plenty of space and the staff is friendly and helpful.
If you’re looking for more frills, feel free to pay 10x that at a local gym. If all you need is a well maintained lap pool that’s not crowded, there’s no beating Asser Levy or the other Manhattan city pools.

***REVIEW FOR OUTDOOR POOL ONLY***
Knowing from image searches that Asser Levy’s outdoor aquatic counterpart wasn’t lined in marble and presided over by a lionhead fountain probably kept me away from here much longer than necessary.
When I looked up the dimensions of this pool on the City’s website (
), I saw 120′ x 45′ x 4′, under a photo that makes the thing look as narrow as a rich person’s personal lap lane. Instantly, my cynical mind determined that 45-​foot lengths were going to be the story here, and dreaded the idea of going there for my «Early Bird» lap swims before work just because this site is incontrovertibly the closest body of water to my present office.
First of all, I was surprised that the entrance to the pool was the same building that houses the grand puba (in my opinion) of NYC’s indoor pools. Not only that, but we get to access the same lockers! I was there a little later than I’d intended. Stomach burning with aggression, I glanced nervously at the line, then realized there were only five mild-​faced dudes in it.
I found the locker room as deserted as ever, but this time, realized there were other showers in addition to the creepy, tiled, open area where I’d rinsed off in cold water at an entirely different time of year. Not only are there a few stalled showers, these stalls have anterooms where you can rest your belongings without having them soaked or besmirched by the floor-​residue and litter of so many other bathers.
The pool was a total trip; shaped like an object in one of Salvador Dali’s paintings and split the LONG way — thank all gods! This meant 120-​foot lengths, which meant 44 lengths made a mile; so much less dizzying even than the 64 lengths required for mileage in standard 25-​yard pools at Ys and private health clubs. Moreover, each lane was HUGELY wide; not as wide as the bitter free-​for-​all at Lasker, but wide enough for people to pass without swimming UPON one another as if making some sort of statement to the folks who happen to be a little slower. Of course, one alpha male gratuitously pushed at my feet before passing by with three feet of waterspace to share, but it’s a testament to the surreal uncrowdedness of this pool that I didn’t give a crap — I was that mellowed out.
I swam all the way to the right; the longest lane (to be safe in my count) for the fastest swimmers. It was definitely weird pushing off the walls because the lanes were so wide… I’d have to push off at almost a 45-​degree angle to aim myself toward my path back the other way. Also, one half of the pool was blindingly lit by the morning sun, while the other half was in the shade, causing the relatively clean but somewhat foggy water to represent an infinite void of powder blue… pretty disorienting… JUST LIKE OPEN WATER! And beyond the rush FDR, you can also sense more open water — the great East River.
So, while a selfish part of myself wanted to keep the outdoor Asser Levy pool close to my chest, I think it’s only fair that I let people know that, at least if you want to swim morning laps here over the summer, then you will be met with long lengths, LOW crowds, disorienting water, and a halfway decent locker facility… though the swimsuit water extractor is currently broken, with a huge wad of neon orange bubble gum sitting triumphantly on top of it, as if to ward off anyone who might still try it.

This outdoor pool is absolutely disgusting. I’ve never seen anything so dirty; it is probably one step above the Ganges. The water is cloudy and you end up wading/​swimming through nets and nets of people’s hair floating in the water. We were literally pulling hairs off our arms and from out between our fingers and off our bodies every 30 seconds. The water reeks, and not of chlorine: there’s urine and hair product — TONS of hair product and sunblock and body odor. My little one is not so great at spitting out the water and ends up drinking some pool water whenever we go swimming. After Asser Levy, he always gets diarrhea.
This pool is absolutely filthy.

I am only reviewing the indoor pool. I was solely interested in a place to lap swim in NYC and after striking out with expensive gyms and clubs, and not being eligible to use college pools, I found out about NY rec centers. For $ 75, you can use any rec center in the city for 6 months or $ 150 for 1 year. Sure they are bare bones, don’t have Olympic sized indoor pools, or any of the luxuries you’d find at a «real» gym, but it’s EXACTLY what I was looking for. Right now, this one is closest to my apartment. Since it’s winter, I’m using the indoor pool which is only 3 lanes and 3yrds shy of 25yrds, but it does the trick and it’s hardly ever crowded. I’m definitely grateful this rec center deal is available and I’m looking forward to using the Williamsburg pool when I move as well as checking out the outdoor pools come summer.

NYC needs to rethink its concept of PUBLIC POOLS. Seems like pools are only public from late June till Labor Day and the remaining 10 months of the year you must be a member to access the facility. Membership is $ 150/​year.
I am not complaining about the fact that there is a cost to access the pool, it’s just that if you are not a member you can’t access it. There is no option to pay a 1-​time access fee. Today, my body told me I needed to swim and my gym doesn’t have a pool. It’s always an epic journey to pack your bag and commute to a public pool, but I was super motivated. Sadly, I could not get in the Asser Levy facility.
Thus, to be clear, the Asser Levy recreation Center, from September till late June, is a PRIVATE FACILITY. It’s cheaper than other private facilities, but it’s still membership-​only.
Now, do I want to pay $ 150/​year to become a member and gain access to the Asser Levy pool that is closest to my home …? NO WAY. The indoor pool is 66’x26’. In my life, I have never seen such a small supposedly-​public pool. You would need to turn around every 6 laps or so and would get out of it with more back and neck ache than when coming in. I got a sneak peek at it and there were only 2 people swimming on a Saturday morning… not very popular, but good because more than 3 people would not fit.
I need to swim, are there any NYC public pools, with a non-​membership-​based access, aside from July and August?

I have never been incarcerated, but this place sometimes makes me feel like I’m doing time… until I see kids playing Foosball, ping pong and billiards in the front.
We’ve come a long way from Equinox, Toto. Wait, I still have money in my pocket.
Gyms can not be measured and the same scale. And I have some experience with just a few gyms (I did NYSC too but was too lazy to review it)
Equinox — Gray Bar
Bally’s — Coop City
Bally’s — Penn Station
Bally’s — Biltmore
Yes its only $ 150 a year (price doubled from 75 in 2011). Thank you NY City Parks and Recreation. Thank you Mayor Bloomberg for keeping this together.
Asser Levy Recreation Center has such a sterile feeling but it is a neighborhood gym that has the basics. That’s all I need. I don’t need the potpourri scents and the wonderful hotel shower items.
I can’t comment on the classes because I haven’t taken any of them.
I come in weekday mornings and it’s great to work out. It’s even better during inclement weather. Nobody shows up. Tuesday nights are ladies nights, so I can’t show up to hit the exercise room. Men’s nights are Thursdays. The indoor pool has 3 lanes for laps.
During the summer, the indoor pool closes and the outdoor pool opens. The outdoor pool is free. If you sign up, swim 25 miles (throughout the summer) you get invited to a dinner and get a t-​shirt. The top three swimmers get trophies. I know what you’re thinking, 25 miles (44 laps = 1 mile in the outdoor pool) is a lot. But it’s not bad. I did it.
Whether indoor or outdoors, the lap lanes apply. The slow and medium speed lanes have the elderly that swim as fast as I can crawl to NJ. The fast lane sometimes has the «I’m-Mike-Phelps-b*tch-get-out-the-way» swimmers.
Excuse me, I need some beauty sleep. Tomorrow morning, I free willy.
IFHTP 3+