The University of Victoria’s McKinnon Pool will undergo an independent engineering assessment to determine whether it can remain open in the short term.
But at a news conference, UVic president Kevin Hall cautioned that the facility has structural issues and it’s too early to say whether the pool can stay open for a year or two — or even at all. Wednesday’s media event marked the university’s first public comments since its abrupt announcement on July 2 that the facility would close permanently.
The pool will be drained on Sept. 15, leaving hundreds of students, varsity and club swimmers, and recreational users to turn to the region’s already crowded six remaining pools.
An outpouring from the community prompted UVic to take another look, Hall said. “It’s been a good process for us at the university. We’ve had a lot of community input both from on our campus and off campus and that has given us the understanding that people care about the pool.”
But Hall said it’s not feasible to keep the pool open in the long term.
“There’s too many structural issues with the building itself, but if we can keep it as a bridge to a new regional project, that would be terrific.”
That would be subject to raising funds to keep the pool open, he said.
The new engineering report, which will augment one already done by UVic, will “look at the opportunity to keep the pool open for another six months, one year, two years, perhaps maybe a little bit longer,” Hall said.
He said he’s started discussions with local and provincial governments about the university being part of a larger regional swimming facility. He said a new pool at UVic — originally planned when the new CARSA facility was on the drawing board a decade ago — is possible but not likely.
“It might be on the campus, it might not,” he said. “I think it depends on who the partners are and where they wish to see the facility.”
And it wouldn’t just be a university facility, Hall said. “We tried 10 years ago to raise money for a new pool and that didn’t work.”
He said UVic has had “budgetary issues,” making capital and operating costs for a new pool highly unlikely. He cited high inflation, declining international student enrolments and other financial pressures.
“The university is not flowing in money … we are continually looking at where we can economize our business so that we can keep running our campus like we do,” he said.
Hall said the space next to the CARSA facility that was originally designed for a pool — and is now a parking lot — would fit a 50-metre competition pool but nothing else. “There is a vision, I think, that the region wants that’s much bigger.”
Hall said the engineering reports will take two or three months and will give UVic an idea what the actual cost would be to repair and reopen.
In announcing the closure in July, UVic said it would take $1.6 million to make repairs.
“It’s not just about the [engineering] report, it’s about finding the funding and that’s where we will turn to the community,” Hall said. “Everyone who’s saying ‘hey we want to help you keep this open … save the pool,’ we’ll be turning to those groups and saying it’s $5 million or $10 million, let’s go and raise that money.”
A Facebook group led by former UVic varsity swimmer and Olympian Wayne Kelly has more than 500 members and an online petition on Change.org had collected almost 4,000 signatures as of Wednesday evening.
Times Colonist publisher and editor Dave Obee has also reached out to the university to lead a fundraising effort to keep the pool open.
Kelly, who was at the press event on Wednesday, said he was happy with UVic’s effort.
“It’s a big win for our Save McKinnon Pool group,” Kelly said. “We wanted to see a delay in the [permanent] closure. I was also really happy to hear they are engaging with an independent engineering firm so we can get a real costing of what we’re looking at to keep it open.”
But he also wants to see UVic re-commit to a 50-metre competition pool on campus.
“We have some really good options that are not $200 million, which is what the new Crystal Pool is,” Kelly said. “They’re looking at a community pool that has a wave pool, but also meeting rooms, yoga rooms and fitness facilities. UVic already has those, and changing rooms.”
Kelly has been speaking with executives at Italian-based Myrtha Pools, which builds stainless steel modular pools at a fraction of the cost of concrete. The company’s pools have been used at several international events, including the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.
He said UVic could acquire a 10-lane, 50-metre pool for about $5.5 million, but noted that doesn’t include decking, stands or roofing.
The company has already agreed to send a representative to Victoria to cost the project at the site, Kelly said.
He said any new pool should be at UVic.
“Students don’t want to jump on a bus or walk downtown,” he said. “They want to finish class or in between classes have an opportunity to take care of their mental and physical wellness.”
Patty Cassels attended Wednesday’s event to show support to keep McKinnon Pool open. She’s the daughter of Fred Martens, who was one of UVic’s original physical education instructors and played a major role in building the McKinnon recreational complex.
She brought along Marten’s lifetime pass to McKinnon Pool, a bronze card with his name engraved. “He’d be very disappointed in seeing the pool close,” Cassels said, “and I know if he hadn’t passed on in 2007, he’d be here today.
“I think a lot of people feel like he did — that swimming and physical education are so important to the overall community.”
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