On June 5, Airdrie City council was presented with two options for the thematic concept for phase one of the future southwest a recreational centre: one that would meet competitive sports needs, and one that would be more focused on leisure.
After discussion and debate, council voted in favour of the latter, with a future design that will include a 25-meter swimming pool instead of a 50-metre pool, and other leisure activities to go along with it.
“The recommendation before us is in the best interest of the majority of people that live here,” Mayor Peter Brown said prior to the June 5 vote. “It’s not going to please everybody, I’m sure, but based on what I see, I think it’s a great decision.”
While council felt it was the option that most closely aligned with public feedback the City received about the future rec centre over the last two years, the decision to steer away from a 50-metre pool hasn’t been unanimously popular – particularly among representatives from the city’s local swim clubs.
Corey McKeown, co-founder of and volunteer with the Airdrie Phoenix Swim Club, expressed concerns about the lack of pool space in the city, and how that shortage will continue into the future with the option council opted to pursue.
“From a competitive standpoint, we are disappointed,” McKeown said. “There are no 50-metre pools between the south end of Edmonton and Seton [in south Calgary], that are usable for competitive space.”
McKeown argued the benefits of having a larger pool would outweigh council's preferred decision. He pointed out that Airdrie currently only has a 25-meter pool at Genesis Place, which is shared with both the public and another swim club based out of Calgary, resulting in limited availability and extensive wait lists.
“We only serve the Airdrie community and we are over capacity by 50 per cent,” McKeown said. “If we had a space to train on, we would probably see more kids – there are 300 kids waiting right now just to get in.”
Shane Esau, the head coach of the Airdrie Phoenix Swim Club, highlighted that Airdrie cannot host provincial championships in Alberta without a larger pool.
“The closest 50-metre pool we have access to is in Red Deer and it’s an outdoor pool, so eight months out of the year, we can’t use it,” Esau said. “Other than that, the only pool we have access to is in Seton, so it’s 45 minutes away.”
Esau said there are only three pools in the province suitable for hosting competitive provincial events: the Kinsman in Edmonton, the MNP Family Sport Centre in Calgary, and to a lesser extent, the pool at the University of Lethbridge.
He argued it’s difficult for clubs that don’t have regular access to such facilities to adequately prepare for provincial meets. To use a different sport as an analogy, he compared it to training for an 18-hole golf tournament on a nine-hole course.
“It’s completely different and puts our kids at a huge disadvantage,” he said.
Additionally, Esau expressed frustration with the insufficient infrastructure for a municipality as large as Airdrie when compared to Alberta’s other mid-sized cities.
“We were just in Medicine Hat and they have a 50-metre pool,” he said. “But they can separate it out so at one end you can have 10 metres dedicated to diving, 25 metres dedicated to swimming and 15 metres dedicated to learning how to swim. Here, we don’t have a diving club.”
McKeown also identified additional benefits a 50-meter pool would bring to the community. He suggested a bigger pool could serve a multi-purpose role that would help alleviate some of the wait list pressures Airdrie is experiencing.
Alexx Diep, coach of the Nose Creek Swim Association, also expressed dissatisfaction with council's decision last week, emphasizing the necessity for a swimming pool suitable for hosting competitive events in Airdrie.
“It’s certainly very disappointing because it’s a big need for our club, for Airdrie and certainly it would’ve been very useful and helpful for the rest of the province,” he said.
Diep believes a 50-meter pool would have a significant impact on the growth of Airdrie's swim clubs, as he feels the lack of available pool space is currently hindering their progress.
The absence of a suitable pool facility is seen as a major obstacle preventing the clubs from expanding and reaching their full potential, according to Diep.
“We have the intention to grow but we just don’t have the space to grow into,” he said. “Having another 50-metre pool would certainly address that problem, so we are missing out on that.”
Diep further highlighted that the City is not only missing out on the potential growth and development of Airdrie swim clubs, but also not capitalizing on the potential economic advantages a 50-meter pool would bring to the community.
“You can only imagine the economic benefits that Airdrie would benefit from, bringing in people from across the country to swim in our pool,” he said.
