After years of underfunding and poor maintenance, the pool was showing some deterioration when a storm in January 1971 damaged its drainage pipe.
Usage of the pool had been low, and the repair costs exceeded the City's budget, so the pool was converted fresh water, resulting in poor water quality; it was closed by the end of 1971.

In 1999, the San Francisco Zoological Society was granted ownership of the pool house.
The swimming pool itself was filled with rocks and gravel, with the space now serving as a parking lot for the zoo.
The poolhouse stood derelict and occupied by wildlife and homeless people for many years until it was destroyed by a fire on December 1, 2012.
The remaining ruins were demolished, and only a fragment consisting of three ornate entrances remains.
After years of underfunding and poor maintenance, the pool was showing some deterioration when a storm in January 1971 damaged its drainage pipe. Usage of the pool had been low, and the repair costs exceeded the City's budget, so the pool was converted fresh water, resulting in poor water quality; it was closed by the end of 1971.
In 1999, the San Francisco Zoological Society was granted ownership of the pool house. The swimming pool itself was filled with rocks and gravel, with the space now serving as a parking lot for the zoo. The poolhouse stood derelict and occupied by wildlife and homeless people for many years until it was destroyed by a fire on December 1, 2012. The remaining ruins were demolished, and only a fragment consisting of three ornate entrances remains.
Fleishhacker Pool