North County Aquatic Center — Sebastian, Florida

The North County Aquatic Center is the Indian River County public pool at 9450 County Road 512 in Sebastian, open all year with three pools under one fence.

Indian River County places the facility in Sebastian off CR 512, approximately 2 miles east of I95, on the county road that links the Interstate 95 interchange with Sebastian (Indian River County). Vero News located it just east of North County Regional Park when it reopened in June 2022 (Vero News). The front desk number listed by the county is (772) 226-1752.

The site holds three bodies of water. The competition pool features 18 lanes at 25 yards for lap swimming and is handicap accessible. Next to it is a diving well with one-meter and three-meter boards, and a separate zero-depth activity pool with slides and a water play structure. That combination makes the Sebastian pool the only county pool with a diving well and a full competition course; the county describes the Gifford Aquatic Center in Vero Beach as a heated zero depth pool with 5 lanes for lap swimming and a splash deck (Indian River County, Gifford Aquatic Center).

The pool is a county facility, run by Indian River County Parks, Recreation and Conservation under the Board of County Commissioners, not by the City of Sebastian. City residents and visitors pay the same posted rates, and every pass sold at Sebastian also works at Gifford.

On the 2026 county schedule, the North County Aquatic Center in Sebastian opens at 6:00 a.m. on weekdays and closes at 6:00 p.m., with shorter weekend hours.

The early weekday opening is aimed at lap swimmers who train before work. The children's activity pool keeps its own seasonal calendar, so outside summer the Sebastian site operates mainly as a lap, diving and fitness pool. Indian River County notes that closures are subject to change and posts holiday hours for the year (Indian River County).

On Memorial Day and Labor Day 2026 the county closed the Gifford pool while keeping the Sebastian pool open for shortened holiday hours, so the CR 512 site was the only county pool operating on those dates. Gifford itself is closed on Mondays and opens at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday through Friday, which makes the North County Aquatic Center the county option for a weekday swim before 10 a.m. (Indian River County).

Adult daily admission at the North County Aquatic Center in Sebastian is $6.43 plus tax for ages 13 to 54, and swimmers 55 and older pay $3.00 plus tax.

Indian River County offers a choice between paying at the gate and buying an aquatic pass, and the pass may be used at both North County and Gifford Aquatic Centers. Family pricing applies only to the longer passes. All guests must pay the entry fee including spectators, so a parent watching from the deck in Sebastian pays the same daily rate as a swimmer (Indian River County).

Prices have risen gradually. When the Sebastian pool reopened in June 2022, Vero News listed adult daily admission at $5.35, children and seniors at $3.21 and the annual pass at $128.40 for the first member (Vero News). In 2008, Aquatics International reported an annual fee of $120 per individual at the Sebastian center (Aquatics International).

The Sebastian pool charges more than the smaller Vero Beach pool for a single visit. The Gifford Aquatic Center lists $4.00 plus tax for ages 13 to 54 and $3.00 plus tax for children, while pass prices are identical at the two Indian River County pools (Indian River County). For a lap swimmer in Sebastian, the annual pass costs about as much as 22 adult day visits at the posted rate.

Last verified: October 10, 2026, on the Indian River County website.

Indian River County runs drop-in Aqua Fit classes, Red Cross lifeguard courses and instructor certifications at the North County Aquatic Center in Sebastian.

Aqua Fit is a pool-based fitness program set to music and led by a certified instructor. In 2026 the county listed classes at both North County Aquatic Center and Gifford Aquatic Center, Monday through Friday except Wednesday, with classes beginning at 10:00 AM and no registration required. A single class costs $5, a card of 8 classes costs $35 and a card of 16 classes costs $70; the county notes that times and days change per month per location (Indian River County, Aquatic Programs). The class has a long history at the Sebastian site: Aquatics International reported in 2008 that attendance at the Aquanautics aerobics class leaped 90 percent compared with the previous year (Aquatics International).

The Sebastian pool is also where the county trains its own staff. The county schedule lists an American Red Cross Lifeguard Certification course at North County Aquatic Center October 13 to 17, 2026, at $250 per participant with scholarships available, and says graduates may be eligible for aquatic jobs starting at $16.38 per hour. An earlier session ran at the Sebastian pool on May 1 to 3, 2026; Sebastian Daily reported that applicants had to be at least 16 and pass a swim test of 150 yards, 2 minutes of treading water using only the legs, and a dive to retrieve a 10-pound brick (Sebastian Daily).

Two instructor courses follow the same Red Cross track. Indian River County offers Water Safety Instructor certification at $325 and Basic Safety Instructor certification at $300 at the North County and Gifford centers, open to people 16 and older who pass stroke prerequisites such as 25 yards of breaststroke and sidestroke. Younger swimmers can try the Junior Lifeguard Program, which costs $150 and begins in June after a tryout of 100 yards without stopping. Private one-on-one swim lessons run year-round at $80.00 for four half-hour lessons (Indian River County, Aquatic Programs).

The Sebastian pool closes for lightning when its ThorGuard warning horn sounds a 15-second blast, and swimmers return only after three 5-second blasts and a staff check.

Afternoon storms over CR 512 are routine in a Sebastian summer, so the weather policy matters as much as the hours. Indian River County describes ThorGuard as a system that analyzes the atmospheric electrostatic field to predict lightning before the first strike. When the horn sounds, all patrons must leave the facility. Rain is handled separately: if a lifeguard cannot see the bottom of the pool because of heavy rain, the pool closes, though swimmers may stay on the deck until management gives the all-clear. Guests who choose not to wait receive pool passes (Indian River County).

The posted facility rules at the North County Aquatic Center cover food, children and equipment. Food and drink are permitted, but glass, alcohol and grills are prohibited. Children 12 and under must have parental supervision, children 6 and under and non-swimmers must stay within arm's reach of an adult, and teenagers 13 to 17 need a waiver on file to use the Sebastian pool without a parent. Only Coast Guard approved flotation devices are allowed, and children 2 and under must wear a swim diaper. The county publishes the rules in English and Spanish.

The North County Aquatic Center opened around 2003, since Aquatics International described the Sebastian pool as 5 years old in a January 2008 profile.

The pool began with a statewide event. According to that profile, the Sebastian center hosted the 2003 Florida High School Swimming and Diving Finals, which brought more than 3,000 swimmers, divers and their families. By 2008 it had hosted the Florida Special Olympics state swim meet for the third year, and its learn-to-swim classes had drawn more than 3,600 participants. The same article noted that many Sebastian residents are retirees and that the center had created classes and events for them, while working under a budget cut 15 percent by the county and state (Aquatics International).

Special Olympics returned in 2016. Sebastian Daily reported that the Special Olympics of Florida State Aquatic Championships would be held at the North County Aquatic Center on Oct. 1 and 2, 2016, hosted by the Indian River County Recreation Department and the Treasure Coast Sports Commission, which recruited volunteers for the meet (Sebastian Daily).

The most recent major repair came in 2022. Sebastian Daily reported that the Indian River County pool on CR 512 would close beginning April 15, 2022, for approximately one month to install a new pool liner, replace the water heater, repair signage, repaint and improve landscaping; pool passes were honored at Gifford during the work (Sebastian Daily). Vero News reported on June 2, 2022 that the Sebastian pool would reopen that Friday after being closed for more than a month (Vero News).