The swimming pool in Conception Bay South welcomed local residents back this week, reopening on Tuesday after an extended period of unplanned maintenance.
Mayor Terry French says he’s happy to have the doors open again.
As a thank you to residents for their patience, he said, free swims are being offered until Sunday.
“We’ve had a great turnout to the pool swims so far this week, and our users seem very glad to be back,” French said in a statement.
“We would like to extend a warm welcome back to all of our pool users, and are pleased to once again provide this high-quality recreational service for the families and residents of Conception Bay South.”
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On Feb. 22, the town issued notice to residents the pool was being closed for 14 to 16 weeks to replace the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system in the pool area. A second HVAC system, serving other areas of the building, was unaffected.
A maintenance contractor had been called to the site on an unrelated issue, and found the pool HVAC was not working and needed to be replaced. The town council decided to move ahead with the project right away.
It meant providing refunds for pool parties, swimming lessons and shallow water fitness class passes for the maintenance period. Other activities at the centre, including squash, playgroups and birthday parties (without pool time), continued as scheduled.
During the pool shutdown, in addition to replacing the HVAC unit and cleaning the system, the town made improvements, with a family change room with access to the pool deck, some new lighting and new paint. There was also some general maintenance normally covered in an August shut down.
The estimated total cost for the unplanned maintenance and renovation work is $740,000.
The mayor has made a point to thank town staff who helped ensure the pool reopened in July.
Looking ahead, the town is working on a new registration system for its recreation programming, including the fall swimming lessons, and expects to have the new system in place ahead of fall registrations. More information about swimming lesson registration is expected to go out to residents in mid-August.
