A new pool for the Alberni Valley is expected to cost more than $70 million. But who will pay for the pool is still a question that needs to be answered.
Staff from the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District and consultants from HCMA Architecture + Design presented a conceptual design and floor plan for a potential new aquatic centre to Port Alberni city council on Tuesday, May 21. The design includes a 260-square-metre wave pool and a 25-metre, six-lane lap pool, which is what most residents supported during public engagement, said architect John Buttery.
The total cost estimate for construction of the pool is around $68,119,555, said Buttery, but this is based on today’s standard industry construction costs. A potential construction start of 2026 could cause the cost to increase by more than $10,000,000. The pool’s annual operational budget is expected be in the range of $1.8 million to $2.2 million.
“Because the project schedule is unknown at this time, it’s important to be aware of the effects of escalation on the capital costs,” Buttery said.
The majority of the funding is expected to come through a capital loan. A location for the new pool has not been chosen yet.
“During the study, several potential locations were reviewed, but no specific site was selected,” said Buttery. “A more detailed review” will need to take place, he added.
Coun. Cindy Solda wanted to know if the current pool could be renovated, instead, but regional district CAO Daniel Sailland said that bringing an old building into modern codes of compliance can be challenging, with “surprise” costs. A large-scale renovation would also require the pool to be closed for a long period of time, which could leave the community without a pool for several years.
The current Echo Aquatic Centre was built in 1967 and is nearing the end of its service life.
“There’s not a lot of stuff in Port Alberni that’s still around from amalgamation, and the pool is one of them,” said Coun. Charles Mealey.
The next discussion is going to be around service cost apportionment, said Sailland, which means determining how much each regional district area will contribute to a regional pool service. A referendum could take place by the end of this year, or early 2025, to determine whether or not each regional area wants to contribute to the pool.
“This is, unfortunately, a slower process, but there are a lot of moving parts and a lot of questions people rightfully have considering it’s a $70 million project,” said Sailland. “If, at the end of the day, the general public is saying we don’t want to work together, we have to re-think our direction.”
