Tanya Foubert CANMORE
Elevation Place has been up and running for almost a year now, but the Town of Canmore is still far from deciding what exactly will happen with the old pool at the Rec Centre.
Earlier this month, development planner Patrick Sorfleet provided an update to council on the work to determine how the space will be redeveloped in the future.
While the public engagement process over the past year identified using the space as a multi-purpose gym with a gymnastics component, there are several outstanding issues that need to be resolved before that becomes a reality.
“In the end, the recommendation that comes out of this process, the concept that best meets council’s criteria, is a multi-use gym with a vault and possible foam pit,” Sorfleet said. “That is just one piece of getting to the eventual rebuilding of the old pool.”
Council recognized the project was a lower priority during budget deliberations in December as a result of extra funds needed to develop short-term and long-term flood mitigation plans. They voted to push it into 2016 in the capital plan and made it clear the $6 million estimated price tag will not be paid by taking on new debt.
Administration is working on what to do with the pool in terms of an interim use before it is redeveloped and how to pay for that interim use. Sorfleet also pointed to the fact administration is looking to complete a recreation master plan in 2015, which will be considered for future recommendations to council on capital needs for the old pool. The recommendation for a multi-use gym will also need to have a cost breakdown performed to give council and the community a better idea of what it would cost.
It will also involve working with local school boards to look at the gymnasiums they have and see if those spaces can be made more available for Town programming as part of an interim or long-term use.
