The city of Berkeley has filled Willard pool with dirt. The pool was shut down June 30, 2010 after voters rejected Measure C, which would have imposed a special tax to help maintain Berkeley’s four public swimming pools.

Don’t make the mistake of trying to dive in.

Frances Dinkelspiel, Berkeleyside and CItyside co-founder, is a journalist and author. Her first book, Towers of Gold: How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California, published in November...