Victoria is planning an assessment of how to best revitalize the more-than-40-year-old Crystal Pool.
City parks director Thomas Soulliere has put forward a $150,000 request for a needs assessment and feasibility study of Crystal, a facility long near the top of the list of city infrastructure needs. The request will be considered during budget deliberations.
While recent studies dealing with the Crystal have focused on the building and its systems, the city has yet to look at issues such as design, site and projected operating and capital costs, Soulliere recently told councillors.
“We don’t have information on the community need. We don’t have information on what the potential design options might look like. We don’t have information in terms of what the community is looking for in terms of the types of facility — the aquatic facility in particular,” Soulliere said. “In terms of siting options, we don’t have information on that and all of these are gaps.”
Several members of council, including Mayor Lisa Helps, said they favour refurbishment over replacement of the facility, which opened in 1971. Preliminary estimates have pegged replacement as costing in the $58-million range.
“I’m not really interested in a new pool,” said Coun. Ben Isitt. “We’re not very wealthy as a community. We have other pressing needs. People don’t really want to pay an endless supply of taxes, but they want a pool that’s fixed up.”
Isitt said users have expressed interest in family change rooms, a fitness facility that is separate from the pool area, and a children’s amenity, such as a swirl pool.
Helps said she never hears from people wanting a new pool. “Most people are either wanting to refurbish the pool or they are silent on the matter. There’s not anyone lobbying us to build a new swimming pool — not one person. Zero,” Helps said. “So I don’t want a whole lot of time wasted on design for a new swimming pool that the community is not even asking us for.”
But Coun. Geoff Young said many people do want a new pool and they demonstrate that by going elsewhere. “The way they say they want a new Crystal Pool is by never going there and by going to Oak Bay Rec and all the other places that they go to instead of going to the Crystal Pool,” Young said.
He said people prefer multi-dimensional facilities where they can play hockey, lift weights in a large, dedicated weight room or play tennis or soccer inside.
Coun. Marianne Alto said regardless of whether the facility is refurbished or replaced, the city should look at partnerships for complementary uses and other options to defray the costs.
The Crystal Pool receives $1.2 million a year from the city’s operating budget. The cost of basic repairs for the mechanical systems has been estimated at $6 million. This year, the city did about $585,000 in repairs that included replacement of four damaged dome panels, safety upgrades to the chlorine system, new storm and sanitary pipes, exterior cladding repairs and window replacements, pool drain covers, installation of a crane system to maintain the filter system, boiler inspections and pipe bracket replacements.
