Photo by Claudia Katz
Story by Annie Dallas 

And the award for the best place to discover an un-godly mutant sea monster in your pool goes to…. Melrose Apartments!

Okay, maybe it's not that bad, but Melrose pools have the worst track record of any apartment complex in Gainesville. This legacy started in October 2000 when an inspector closed the pool with orders to clean and "remove the chair" from the pool -- whatever that means. His report also indicated the pool area was missing a life pole. But given the total absence of chlorine and a pH level above 8 (significantly higher than the acceptable 7.2-7.8), Melrose probably figured that its swimmers were destined for an untimely demise -- with or without life-saving equipment. But at least its swimmers won't have to worry about dry, itchy skin from chlorine. Those lucky ducks!

With seven of the 10 inspection reports filed over five months in 2002 ending in unsatisfactory grades, it seems Melrose regards this lurid legacy as a time-honored tradition. In every case, it took Melrose a subsequent re-inspection, and sometimes re-inspections upon re-inspections, to win satisfactory marks.

To see how your apartment complex or on-campus pool fared, mosey on over to the Alachua County Department of Health on SE 24th Street, off of East University Avenue. Public pool and bathing place inspection reports are custody of the environmental health department and are public records, so you shouldn't have any problems getting a copy.

Produced by Kristen Beyke and Jenny Altier