Council approves extra $22.5M to move forward with Vancouver Aquatic Centre reno, 25-metre pool
1 speaker said the park board has 'lost the trust' of the swimming community
Vancouver city councillors have voted to approve the park board's request for an additional $22.5 million in funding to renovate the Vancouver Aquatic Centre, bringing the price tag for the controversial project to $175 million.
The decision came Wednesday night after several speakers, including multiple children, shared their opposition to replacing the existing 50-metre, Olympic-sized pool with a new 25-metre one, citing impacts to competitive swim training.
After considering the potential impacts of a delay and the building's seismic safety, councillors voted 10-2 in favour of approving the funding. Coun. Peter Meiszner was absent, and Coun. Peter Fry abstained from voting due to a conflict of interest.
"We're kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place right now," said Coun. Rebecca Bligh after the vote.
The aging Vancouver Aquatic Centre made headlines in March 2022 after a large piece of the building's facade fell off.
The centre has served as a premier sporting venue in Vancouver's densely populated West End since it opened in 1974, drawing swimmers, synchronized swimming teams, water polo players and divers for training and competitions.
Recently, however, the pool has been described as being at "the end of its functional lifespan."
A majority of voters in the 2022 municipal election supported the aquatic centre's renewal, but the first mention of a smaller 25-metre pool didn't come until February of this year — revealed in the design proposal brought forward by city staff — sparking outcry from the swimming community.
Park board staff said it wasn't feasible to deliver a 50-metre pool within the existing building footprint while also meeting industry standards for maintenance and accessibility.
The Vancouver Park Board approved the design the following month, subject to city council agreeing to an additional $22.5 million for the project — a request swimming advocates asked city council to reject, earlier this week.
During the Wednesday meeting, one speaker said the park board has "lost the trust and confidence of the people of Vancouver and especially the swimming community."
"No one voted for a lazy river and a 1,300-square-foot hot tub," said resident Scott Lear.
"Vancouver just needs a 50-metre pool, it doesn't need a fancy designed building. It needs something functional first, and form second," he said.
One 10-year-old, Georgia Neill, who trains with the Canadian Dolphin Swim Club at the aquatic centre, appealed to councillors to "please think of other ways to keep our 50-metre pool, not for me or my teammates, but for all the people who signed the petition to say this is not what we want in Vancouver."
Another young swimmer, Geoffrey Mu, said relocating the club and training to the Hillcrest Aquatic Centre, as park board staff have recommended, would make it difficult to attend practice, or force other members to consider joining another swim club.
"If you support VAC's plan to change our 50-metre pool, you'll be taking away the future of many young swimmers including me," said the 12-year-old.
Addressing the speakers after the vote, Bligh said she's not in favour of doing away with a 50-metre pool, but that she understands the need to upgrade the aquatic centre.
She thanked speakers for their advocacy and acknowledged their concerns.
"This is an impossible decision for me on the topic.... We have to get to a better solution here," Bligh said.
"I'm not sure we're going to find it today, but I'm absolutely in your corner for what you shared and what you brought to the conversation today."
The Vancouver Aquatic Centre is scheduled to close for the renovations in 2026 and reopen sometime in 2029.
With files from Karin Larsen, Shaurya Kshatri and Akshay Kulkarni