Vancouver Aquatic Centre renewal approved without 50-metre pool

The fate and fit of the pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre (VAC) were decided by the city’s Board of Parks and Recreation Monday.

In March, some VAC-goers pushed back against a Park Board report that recommended decreasing the size of the building’s largest pool from 50 to 25 metres.

A march took place outside the centre Saturday morning to help save the current pool, which is one of the few facilities in the Lower Mainland that houses an Olympic-sized tank.

The current pool, which has been around for half a century, is in need of being replaced. The aging structure has had many issues, including having concrete chunks of the roof fall into the pool in 2024.

The proposed $170-million project at the VAC includes building the smaller pool, as well as a leisure pool, new dive towers, and a modern fitness centre. According to the park board, the current 50-metre pool doesn’t meet modern standards for competition or accessibility.

Commissioners approved the proposal in a committee meeting Monday night. Park Board Chair Laura Christensen says as part of the decision, the board is also “reaffirming a commitment for a new 50-metre aquatic facility in the next ten years.”

Staff were directed to update a section of the Park Board’s long-term road map for aquatics in the city to incorporate provisions for the promise.

Jennie Lo with the Canadian Dolphin Swim Club says the decision has shaken her faith in democracy and left her reeling.

“The public and the community spoke very loud and clear, and we were not heard,” said Lo.

She says the community was realistic about its chances, understanding that the VAC footprint didn’t support a pool of that size but hoping that the park board would offer keeping the VAC open until another 50-metre pool could be confirmed or temporarily installed in another location.

Park board staff have also been directed to report back on the feasibility of “adding a temporary pool basin to the Vancouver Aquatic Centre to accommodate swimmers during the renewal,” but Lo says her hopes aren’t high.

“By pushing forward with this plan right now, the park board now has breathing space. They say, ‘Great, we’re going to continue to build this, this pool, the 25-metre, the leisure pool, and the pressure is off.’ And I think their secret hope is that by the time this pool is built, that the 50-metre pool promise will be forgotten,” said Lo.

The board says the VAC currently operates at approximately 30 per cent of its potential capacity, but Lo says the decision leaves many athletes and organizers in the lurch.

“Clubs like the Canadian Dolphin Swim Club — which has been around since 1956 — this will force us to reevaluate our programming and probably reduce our club capacity, because there just isn’t enough water in the city to train our swimmers and all of our groups at the level we’re training right now. So we’re going to have to make some pretty hard decisions in the next 18 months.”

She says the community of protestors felt ignored at Monday’s meeting, but they aren’t done fighting.

“We’re going to strategize and consider our next step, because this is too important to too many people to just roll over and accept this decision.”

1130 NewsRadio has reached out to the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation for comment.

—With files from Angelyna Mintz, Ridley Wilson, and Anthony Atanasov