Strathcona residents lobby Edmonton council for new pool

Strathcona-area residents hope the city won't leave them high and dry as their local pool nears the end of its life.

Scona Pool in the Strathcona High School at 72nd Avenue and 104th Street is more than 60 years old and is on the city's list to be closed, along with Eastglen and Oliver pools. The city estimates that closing the three facilities would save a total of $1.4 million overthe next four years.

Dozens of residentsturned out to a public hearing at Edmonton City Hall Monday to urge council to invest in a replacement Rollie Miles Leisure Centre in the upcoming 2019-22 budget.

Many belong to "Friends of SconaRec," a group advocating for a new fitnesscentre for Strathcona.

Joel Semeniuk, a pediatrician and father of four, told council it's important heand his children are able to walk or bike to getto the local recreation facility, the way they can with Scona Pool.

"Encouraging people to live in an area without driving and also to have healthy, active transportation, we need rec centres that are closer to us," he said.

IgaSpeurhas been swimming atSconaPool for 30 years and is part of the push for a replacement.

"I know almost everybody that uses the pool," she toldCBCNews in an interview in October. "I've seen generations of kids from theStrathconaHigh School train here."

She said a replacement is "absolutely needed."

SconaPool and Rollie Miles Athletic District Park next to Strathcona High School, serve almost52,000 people in 11 communities, including Allendale, Belgravia, Garneau and Ritchie.

A city report suggests several facilities, including the Kinsmen Sports Centre, Confederation Leisure Centre and Bonnie Doon Leisure Centre, could accommodate these communities.

Kim Clegg with the Queen Alexandra community leaguesaid asking residents to drive to another recreation centre defeats the purpose of putting in bike lanes and fixing sidewalks.

"A lot of people have moved into these core neighbourhoods because they want that lifestyle and they're encouraged by the city to have a car-free lifestyle," he said.

"So to have a modest facility to go in to cover 8-12 neighbourhoodsseems very reasonable."

The proposed Rollie Miles Leisure Centre would include an eight-lane pool, a single court gymnasium, a fitness area, washrooms and storage to support an outdoor skating rink.

It would cost $75 million to buildbut the preliminary design is estimated to be $3.5 million.

It's an amount Mayor Don Iveson is willing to entertain.

Iveson said challenges with the aging facility including the lack of wheelchair accessibility means closure is inevitable.

A newer pool will be more economical to run, he added Monday.

"I think the case is strong to replace it. The question is just what happens in the in-between."

He and Coun. Ben Henderson plan to encourage council to come up with the money for the design of the rec centreduring upcomingbudget debates.

Funding opportunities

Clegg argues there's another good reason to support a leisure centre near Whyte Avenue.

Several high rises, including the Mezzo and Southpark, are going up in the next few years, adding more people to the community.

• Southpark highrise gets the go-ahead on Whyte Avenue
• City council approves controversial highrise just off Whyte Avenue

But the community is not necessarily asking for taxpayer money to buildit.

Cleggnoted that there arealternative ways to fund smaller rec centres, including fundraising campaigns and contributions from new developers.

"There's going to be probably 15 new buildings going in the next 20 years in that area," Clegg said.

"If each of them put in $1.5 million, which is kind of the standard, we're already looking at a third of the rec centre being covered by that."

• Playing favourites: Edmonton's building blitz of mega recreation centres a tough act to follow
• Rec centre, Terwillegar Drive left out of Edmonton's capital budget

Another option Ivesonmentionedis to make Strathcona a community revitalization levy zone (CRL) a program supported by the province to help pay for projects.

Cleggthinks a modest rec centre for Strathcona and surrounding communities is sustainable and makes sense for these communities, differing from the $300 million mega rec centres in some suburbs.

@natashariebe