1947 replies to this topic

[spanky123]

^ And hence the problem. Council won't push for a referendum if they think it will fail. Too much political capital at stake.

[Victoria Watcher]

15 years later and we do not even know where the new pool will be located, that's how bad these politicians are at getting anything done.

[Victoria Watcher]

Crystal Pool keep-up a costly affair



By Brennan Clarke
Victoria News
Jan 12 2007


City councillors not anxious to throw good money after bad

The rising cost of maintenance at Victoria’s aging Crystal Pool has some councillors demanding progress on plans to build a new recreation centre in the city.

Commenting on proposed annual maintenance costs in excess of $900,000 for the coming fiscal year, Coun. Geoff Young suggested the money would be better spent building a new pool and recreation centre.

“This is now a major expenditure program of close to $1 million a year,” he said Tuesday during the first of three special council meetings held to examine the 2007-08 municipal budget.

“My fear is that at some point we’re going to have to say ‘this is ridiculous.’ We’re going to say ‘we can’t afford to do this.’

“At some point it’s going to be cheaper to hire a taxi to go swimming in Saanich.”

The city recreation department unveiled a redevelopment plan for Crystal Pool in 2004, but the proposal called for the closure of several Victoria community centres and met with stiff opposition.

Since then the recreation department has conducted several rounds of consultation, but made precious little progress. Last spring, the department hired a consultant to help organize a community forum in June and “collate” the feedback with the goal of developing a plan some time in the fall.

Recreation director Donna Atkinson told council a steering committee is slated to hold further meetings beginning in February.

Coun. Helen Hughes warned that rushing into another ill-conceived plan would be a mistake.

“The steps need to be taken extremely carefully or else we do not carry the rest of Victoria along with us,” she said.

mailto:bclarke@vicnews.com

 

 

The city recreation department unveiled a redevelopment plan for Crystal Pool in 2004, but the proposal called for the closure of several Victoria community centres and met with stiff opposition.

 

 

Oh sorry, at least 20 years later.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 28 December 2023 - 10:08 AM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Crystal Pool and refreshing public spaces among Victoria council’s ‘exciting’ plans for 2024

 

https://www.cheknews...r-2024-1185717/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 12 January 2024 - 08:19 AM.

[Nparker]

The CoV can't even fill in potholes. They need to give up on their lofty dreams.

[aastra]

Putting a new pool on the RAP parking lot would enable the complete restoration of Central Park back to its pre-Crystal days (but even better than before). Wouldn't that be the ideal solution? North Park concerns re: shortage of park space would be settled forever. And you would also save a fortune re: no need to rip out perfectly good courts and playgrounds at Central Park to make way for the new pool (not to mention, no need to chop down a bunch of trees). If the RAP property is deemed to be not quite large enough (it's actually more than large enough, but I'm anticipating this supposed shortcoming) then extend it over Vancouver Street a bit, because as modern/enlightened people we should be eager and willing to reclaim roadways wherever it makes sense to do so, right? And finally, address the parking requirements for RAP, the arena, and the new pool itself by building a parkade on the arena parking lot.

[spanky123]

^ Now that the City has purchased land for a park for the NPNA they no longer need Central Park and it can all be used for more homeless housing alongside a new addiction and recover centre plus pool!

[aastra]

Good point. Wouldn't it be funny* if even more of Central Park's total area gets repurposed as non-park space by the time this whole thing is done?

 

*and totally unexpected