A study of the Bonnyville Swimming Pool has identified a number of fixes needed, but favours renovations on the facility over replacement.
“Essentially, the report recommends renovating the existing facility as the preferred alternative versus replacing it at this time, with the idea that a new aquatic centre would cost in the range of $18 to $20 million, depending on the features,” assistant CAO Bill Rogers told town council at their Oct. 25 meeting.
The engineering study and needs assessment was conducted by Manasc Isaac Architects, and looked at the structural, electrical, mechanical, civil, and architectural systems of the pool. The to do list from the study was broken down into three priority levels: ‘must do items', ‘should do items', and ‘nice to have items'.
The must do items total just under $373,000, including engineering, contractor, and contingency fees. Among the over 30 projects listed as a high priority are replacing the air handling and pool heating controls with digital ones, sanding and refinishing the beams above the pool, and repairing the exterior brick.
Included in the should do projects is the installation of new sound barrier material, replacing the sloped area of the pool roof, and a number of protective measures to prevent items like the pool deck and steel from salt corrosion, as well as replacing already rusted piping.
“Traditionally it was a fresh water pool; the decision was made to switch over (to salt water) after the flood a few years ago. What we deal with now is rust where we haven't had it before, because of the salt water, and circulation systems with the pipes wearing out quicker,” explained Rogers, adding that the upside is easier treatment and chlorination of the pool.
Functional upgrades in the should do category further list an elevator, concession area, new family change room, and expanded teaching pool.
Future projects that would be ‘nice to have' include a new classroom area at the gallery level, removing the interior stucco and replacing with drywall, work on the reception area windows, and major pool mechanical upgrades.
The price tag for the should do items sits at $1.5 million, while the nice to have items come at a cost of $6.4 million.
“What we're recommending is the must do items be added to the 2017 capital budget, so we can get them done. Then the should do and nice to have items be talked about as part of our future years budgeting process,” said Rogers. “I'll admit, it would be nice to get all of the must do and should do items done, but they total almost $2 million. I would suggest that the must do items be done within the next year, and the should do items within the next couple years if we can budget for them.”
Moving ahead with the must do items set out by the needs assessment study, Rogers noted that they'll now be identifying the best time for the projects to be completed.
“We will have to organize all of the items and attach to a timeline. We always have a two week shutdown; if we need to go for a longer shut down next year because of the recommendation then we'll plan for that as well.”
