Winnipeg's budget proposal includes plans to close several pools and put them in splash pads

The City of Winnipeg may close several aging pools and replace some with splash pads over the next six years.

The city's preliminary 2024 budget released Wednesday includes a proposal to replace or retire 20 outdoor pools and open 10 new splash pads at a cost of about $20 million.

Eldon Ross Indoor Pool and Happyland and Windsor Park Outdoor Pools will also close in the coming years.

Chairman of the Finance Department. Jeff Broughati said these pools are nearing the end of their life cycles and are more expensive to operate due to staffing and maintenance costs.

“They're 50, 60, 70-year-old infrastructure and they need significant investment,” he said.

It was also difficult to find enough staff to keep the pools open, not to mention sprinklers, Brovati said.

“We have pools that we can't open because we can't get attendants,” he said.

“One of the good things about spray pads is that they require staff to be there to make sure they're safe and everything is working, but you don't need someone on a regular basis.”

The plan is to build and open new splash pads before the pools close, according to the draft budget.

Four wading pools will be closed this year in areas with new splash pads opening soon at Cordova, Bronx Park, Valor (at the Clifton site) and Turtle Island Community Centers.

Other pools located on the chopping block include those located at the Winnaqua Community Center, Tyndall Park Community Center, Elmwood Winter Club, Centennial Park, and Bruce Park.

The 2024 preliminary budget allocates $150,000 to decommission the city's aging water facilities, and the city plans to spend about $20 million over the next six years to build new sprinklers.

The resident of St. Boniface is unhappy

The closure of the Happyland Park outdoor pool in St. Boniface doesn't sit well with Teresa Quick of the South St. Boniface Residents Association, who says the community has been fighting to get it repaired for years.

“We don't have anything to replace it,” he said. “It's an outdoor pool. It's where kids go to learn to swim. It needs to be fixed.”

He said the pool is popular not only with children during the summer months, but also with adults who have no other recreational opportunities nearby and lost Norwood Pool five years ago.

“Where do adults go?” – said Quick. “They don't run around on the splash pad.”

Earl of St. Boniface. Matt Allard said he was unaware of plans to close the Happyland pool and he hopes to persuade his council colleagues to reverse it.

“These pools are located in working-class neighborhoods and are free to enter, and I think that's the kind of programming we need to engage youth and families.”

But Kon. Winnipeg Community Services Committee Chair Evan Duncan (Charleswood-Texedo-Westwood) said in recent years, the pools have seen fewer visitors and the splash pad has become more popular.

“I think that's where we have to make a decision if we're going to invest in old infrastructure or turn around here and invest in new infrastructure that serves a larger part of the community,” he said.

Overview of Sherbrooke Basin

The draft budget also includes plans for a four-year review of the Kinsmen Sherbrook Pool, which will analyze monthly usage, annual revenue and operating costs.

The city has no immediate plans to close the pool in the Spence neighborhood, but the city needs to weigh how it can afford to keep it open in the long term, Duncan said.

“We're looking at it to see what makes financial sense here. Prices are rising to maintain this pool,” he said.

The permanent policy commissions of the city will hold public hearings on the draft budget in a series of meetings starting from March 1.

The council will meet on March 20 to consider the budget.