With provincial money for east end pool, Moncton digs for other sources

Pikey French looks at the crumbling pool, its deep end filled with filthy water, at the Moncton East Youth Centre.

It was closed in 2013after 40 years of use, andFrench, the executive director of the centre, says it's been a loss for neighbourhood children.

"It's a challenged area and this means everything to them," French said. "It's their whole summer so they've lost a whole generation of kids so it's important."

Now the province has announced it will contribute$500,000toward a new pool, a planthat has been delayed several times atMonctoncity council.

The money brings the provincial and municipal funding to $1.6 million, but $2.3 million is needed.

• Moncton neigbourhood's long-awaited pool to be built by 2018

Mayor Dawn Arnold said city staff have been asked to find a way to make up the shortfall of $700,000, which might affect other projects.

"They're the experts," Arnold said. "They're going to come back to us with a variety of options."

The tender process for the new pool closed earlier this month, but Arnold said a contract can't be awarded until all the funding is secured.

The new pool is supposed to open next summer, but "that really depends on what council decides," Arnold said.

The Moncton East Youth Centre is in Coun.Shawn Crossman's ward, and he's been fighting for a new pool since the beginning.

Crossman said he's excited about the provincial funding and confident the city will find the additional $700,000. He suggested it come from reserves.

But if some projects have to be delayed, Crossman said, he's ready to fight again.

"I very much expect that battle to happen."

It's time the project moved forward, he said.

"The unfortunate sections of Moncton seems to always be put on the back burner," Crossman said. "And when there's a project as important as this coming forward, there always seems to be a way that city hall will say we're going to cut here, we're going to cut there, and that's not fair.

He pointed to the Centennial Beach pool project, for which the budget almost doubled to $5.4 million, "and they found the money within house."

French is also hopeful a new pool will be ready by next summer.

"Hopefully, with the province showing this kind of support, they'll push through the majority of council's wishes," she said.