SwimU in Leesburg Suddenly Closes Doors

SwimU, a Leesburg swimming instruction school, closed suddenly on Saturday, leaving many families in town and the greater Loudoun area confused and upset at the loss of the pool.
 
An email sent to parents from school officials describes a dispute with their landlord they claim forced them to close the school.

The email says the landlord used its right “to take possession of the facility and replace SwimU with a different tenant if they believed that it was an at risk facility.”

“SwimU did not choose to close down … It was always the intention of SwimU to stay in business and press forward with swim training,”  Steve Olds, a representative of the school, said in an email to customers.
 
The note continues:
 
“On Thursday the landlord contacted SwimU to meet them at the facility to turn over the keys.  They told us that they had found a different swim lesson company and was exercising their right the take position on Saturday at 11:00am.”
 
SwimU is located at the Village at Leesburg shopping center on 1608 Village Market Blvd. Michelle Childs, an assistant property manager at the shopping center, said that the company is operating their “due diligence” in relation to SwimU.
 
She also said Cypress Equities, the corporate arm that operates the shopping center, would be issuing a statement on the incident. A call placed to Cypress Equities was not immediately returned.
 
The Village at Leesburg is a mixed-use center with 520,000 square feet of retail space that is home to several businesses, including LA Fitness, Pinkberry, and Eggspectation. 

SwimU, which opened in 2012, offered private lessons, swim parties and certification classes.
 
The email from SwimU says parents who had paid for lessons in advance will be refunded; all automatic payments for lessons are going to be halted. It also emphasizes the business owners did not know far in advance that the school would be closing.
  
The business’ Facebook page had a few comments from disappointed customers:
 
“Thank you to all the instructors for your dedication and investment. I wish you the very best going forward,” read a note from Catron Enloe.
 
A call placed to the SwimU offices prompted an automated message that said that “the phone number is not set up to take calls.”
 
In May, Loudoun County firefighters were called to the school after pool chemicals from SwimU prompted reports of a possible gas leak. Three adults were taken to the hospital in the incident, though they did not report significant injuries, Patch reported at the time.

Patch will update this story as more information becomes available.