RICHMOND, B.C. — The opening of a new pool facility in Richmond, B.C. has been postponed indefinitely as experts work to determine why a concrete base shifted and how to fix it.
Ted Townsend, Richmond’s director of corporate communications, said the damage was discovered after the pools at the Minoru Centre for Active Living were drained during commissioning work in preparation for the its opening in March.
“Until then it had been perfectly fine, but we discovered that the base had shifted and was damaged,” said Townsend. “We need to investigate it and determine why it happened and then, obviously, complete repairs so we don’t have a repeat situation.”
Townsend said the city will have more details on when the pool may be open after a full assessment has been done.
“This is the first time I have ever been aware of this kind of situation for us,” said Townsend, who added the city hasn’t built an aquatic centre for at least 25 years.
The aquatic centre has two 25-metre swimming pools (one eight-lane tank and one six-lane tank) with accessible features and varying depths and temperatures, allowing for greater usability and flexibility in programming.
The centre will also feature a wellness area with the country’s two largest hot tubs, a cold plunge pool, a steam room, saunas and an 8,500-square-foot fitness gym.
While the pool won’t be opening, other parts of the Minoru Centre for Active Living will. The facility’s seniors centre and events centre will be accessible to the public March 11 while the aquatics and fitness centre will remain closed.
The events centre includes eight team rooms and a multipurpose space for sport field and other users. The events centre will also support tournaments and activities on the adjacent artificial turf fields, Clement Oval and other park facilities. The city has already wrapped up redevelopment of artificial turf fields, field lighting and other sports fields within Minoru Park as part of the project.
The seniors centre includes a lounge and a full-service cafe. The centre also boasts a range of activity rooms, including an arts studio, woodworking shop, billiards room, multipurpose rooms and a dedicated entrance and lobby. The project was Designed by HCMA Architecture + Design.
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