Friday Morning Swim Club canceled but hundreds still show up with police standing by

CHICAGO - The Friday Morning Swim Club was canceled for the week but hundreds still showed up to jump in with police monitoring on the shore of Montrose Harbor.

The group announced this week there would be no organized jump. Still, around 6:30 a.m. hundreds arrived at the harbor to swim.

Police were called over to the 4400 block of N. Jean-Baptiste Pointe DuSable Lake Shore Drive and found the group "gathered peacefully," but officers remained at the harbor to monitor.

Friday Morning Swim Club’s growth started in 2021 by word of mouth as a way for friends to catch up before the start of the weekend. By the end of that summer, it had grown from eight friends to around 700 people.

With thousands joining the 7 a.m. jump as of recently, Friday Morning Swim Club has been breaking almost every rule the Chicago Park District has about swimming — and getting away with it.

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The swim club takes place hours before swimming is allowed — and in an area that regularly attracts swimmers but is never patrolled by lifeguards, making it a non-permitted swimming area. Blow-up floats, which are prohibited by the park district, are a staple.

Chicago Park District officials now say they have approached organizers of the swim club about getting the event permitted — but never heard back from the group.

Organizers previously told the Sun-Times they were never contacted by the Park District.

Nicole Novotny, the club’s co-founder, said they had previously looked into getting a permit but didn’t apply for one since the harbor where the club takes place isn’t listed in the permit application.