As the Queens Pool Committee gets down to the business of planning a replacement for the outdoor pool in Milton, some in the community are asking why those resources aren’t being poured into the development of an indoor pool for Queens.
At the recent Region of Queens council meeting some suggested the estimated $3 million anonymous donation should be lumped together with the $2.5 million the Region had set aside for a replacement to get close to $6 million in seed money.
They say the next step would be to use that money to entice the province and federal government to provide matching funding up to $18 million to build an indoor facility.
The group recognized an indoor pool would require a great deal more annual funding to run year-round.
The closest comparable facility to what’s being proposed for Queens Place is the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre.
The Lunenburg County Multi-Purpose Centre Corporation oversees operations at the LCLC.
Projected year-end numbers released at their January meeting show the Town of Bridgewater and the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg contributed a total of $1,054,915 in municipal operating grants to the LCLC, just over half the $1,980,192 the facility took in total revenue.
The corporation is expecting expenses will be $2,215,323 for an operating loss of $235,131 in 2022-2023.
The LCLC offers a rink, pool, meeting and fitness rooms, and houses the public library.
General Manager Kent Walsh says that while it may sound similar to what Queens Place would look like if the proposed indoor pool was added, it really is not a fair comparison.
“I was thinking of analogies and it’s like saying, what’s the fuel economy in a car,” said Walsh. “Well, it depends on the car and if I tell you that the fuel economy is 14 litres to the 100kms and what does that actually mean when you’re looking at a different car. It’s just totally different.”
Walsh says there are any number of factors that will impact the operating costs of an indoor pool. He says the hours of operation, the number of swim lessons and other programming that is offered will impact the amount it will cost for staffing.
The size of the pool, and the source of power, whether it is solar, direct from the NS Power grid or some other method will dictate some of the operating costs. And those numbers are just the tip of the iceberg.
Walsh says without knowing the final design it is impossible to begin to guess what the operating cost of an indoor pool facility would be.
He says from his experience, whether Queens builds an indoor or outdoor pool they should put together their long-term wish list for the facility and build it all at once.
“I think the one learning from the LCLC, because there were so many cuts made when things were being constructed, is that you just shoot yourself in the foot long term. If they end up going into this thing God I hope they go whole hog,” said Walsh. “ Don't try to make a four lane, you know getting under the wire on costs. Just go the whole nine-yards because otherwise in five years when you just completely outgrown the thing…”
Walsh is naturally a huge supporter of recreation and fitness facilities.
He says every community is trying to attract healthcare workers and other talented people to come work in their industries, and a well-developed recreation centre can be a huge factor when trying to recruit young families to the area.
Welsh firmly believes the health benefits to the community more than make up for the cost to run many of these programs.
“You know what it costs when someone has a heart attack? A million dollars right off the bat, heart attack, bypass surgery, recovery, a million dollars. And it stresses out a system that's already stressed out, all the negative things that come from you know, poor health.”
Walsh says it’s always better and less costly to prevent those kind of health emergencies. “If you can put programs in place that improve health outcomes for people, well how many, how many people do you got to divert from having a heart attack to make it worthwhile right?”
With no estimates on the cost to build and operate an indoor pool and no firm commitment from other levels of government to come up with additional funding to pay for it the indoor pool discussion could very well amount to little more than a nice idea.
Council will be addressing several motions pertaining to the construction of an outdoor pool when they meet this Tuesday, Feb. 14.
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