History

The community of Dona Ana didn’t have a lot to call its own in 1982. Bill Bennett, a contractor and engineer, lived out there with his wife and four children. There was nothing for his children to do…and nothing for the community either. And every summer there would be the stories in the newspaper and TV, reporting drownings, injuries suffered when a child tried to swim in the river, or a flooded ditch or levy. Bill knew it didn’t have to happen that way – so he got a small business loan and built a pool. It was sort of like Field of Dreams years before the movie came out: “Build it and people will come.”

When they came, they saw something that didn’t exist anywhere else in the state: a massive public swimming pool – three pools, really: a  2 ½  to 3 ½ ft. kiddie pool, a 4 to 7 ft. deep AAU-sanctioned lap pool, and a 13 ½ ft. diving well. Bill knew what customers wanted: they wanted room to move – and they didn’t want to have to dodge people diving over their heads.

People have been coming to Desert Hills Pool now for more than 20 years. What started as a labor of love for Bill continues to be owned, maintained and operated by the Bennett family.