There will be no new inflatable toys in the pools of Fountain Park.
None that cost taxpayers $60,000 that is, after a unanimous decision by St. Albert council Tuesday, Oct. 15.
At issue was the possibility of purchasing a massive inflatable amenity that could be placed in the pool at the Fountain Park Recreation Centre and enjoyed by visitors to the popular aquatic centre as a replacement feature for the decommissioned waterslide.
A survey of more than 400 residents pointed the city in the direction of the floaty, but politicians didn’t like the calculus when staffers went through the numbers.
Even councillors Sheena Hughes and Shelley Biermanski, who declared at the outset they were on the fence and could be persuaded, and Wes Brodhead, who, calling in from Italy, lamented the work by staff already done and the feedback from the public, couldn’t square the time exchange.
They were told some floaties used elsewhere, probably made of a heavy plasticized or rubberized canvas-type material, take about 45 minutes to inflate and secure, and to deflate and put away, not to mention the safety checks that would have to be done before swimmers were allowed on.
On such days, probably twice a month, there would be “60 to 90 minutes for non-inflatable usage of the basin,” according to a city staffer, which didn’t sit well with councillors including Mike Killick.
Without a floaty in the picture, 50 to 75 people can enjoy the pool. Finding more aquatic opportunities for residents is city council’s top recreation priority, so taking hours away just didn’t hold water for the deciders.
“I don’t think we have a problem attracting people to pool,” Killick said. “We don’t have enough pool for the people who already want to be there.”
In the survey, 188 residents chose a floating amenity from the list of provided options, and 54 chose adding a third set of panels to the over-water climbing wall, the next most popular choice. (Actually, with 102 responses, “both” was the second-most popular. “Neither” was the choice of 52, while just seven selected “other”).
Coun. Natalie Joly said the Youth Advisory Committee (YAC), which was consulted, didn’t provide an opinion because city staff didn’t answer their questions, including what it would cost.
“They understand money is not growing on trees in the city,” she said, also attending the meeting via video. “They had a whole bunch of other questions that weren’t answered so they said they couldn’t intelligently decide.”
Mayor Cathy Heron pointed out that the survey respondents, likewise, didn’t have the cost when they made their selections.
“I said at the start, the people who responded didn’t have awareness of the capital cost or the impact to the rest of the pool,” she said. “If they were asked that, they might have different opinions.”
Some councillors including Joly and Killick also expressed concern that city administrators didn’t poll front-line recreation centre workers, the ones who would have to use and maintain the floaty.
Coun. Ken MacKay suggested a sponsorship with a private sector partner as is the case with the children’s splash area could lead to some opportunities for fun for residents, but agreed with his colleagues that spending taxpayer money to reduce the amount of time available for most activities at the pool is a non-starter.
“I think we had an amenity that is very attractive and heavily used with or without additional amenities.”
