Just before lunch the university announced the 40-year-old pool would close in the spring of 2016 for an indefinite period of time because it is in need of major repairs.
“The pool is in the situation where we have to find an investment of $1.8 million to rehabilitate the pool to make it operational in a long-term sense,” said Bradshaw, the campus’s associate vice-president of administration and finance.
He said it’s a technical deferred maintenance issue that has reached the point where it can’t be put off any longer.
The pool deck, the concrete slab that supports the pool, has concrete falling off it and the rebar that gives the structure its integrity is corroding.
It’s something the university first identified eight or nine years ago. It wasn’t a major concern at the time, but over the last few months Atlantic Consultants carried out a full assessment of the pool to provide the university with an understanding of the situation.
The recommendation of the consultant is that it needs to be repaired. Based on the consultant’s report there is no immediate concern for patrons using the pool, and so operations will continue to the end of the winter semester in mid-April.
In terms of what the closure will mean to the university’s bottom line, Bradshaw said the pool does makes some revenue, but its operation is more or less subsidized from the campus’s budget.
“That’s the reality of pools in general that they don’t make money. Very few operations have full cost recovery.”
The closure, however, will have an impact on the community.
Some 600 people use the pool and it’s not known if the Arts and Culture Centre pool will be able to support those seeking an alternate location.
“It’s a well-used facility from that perspective,” said Bradshaw. “It’s a facility that brings people to campus that might not otherwise come to campus, and we would regret if that situation weren’t able to continue in the future.”
Bradshaw said this will be an active issue for the campus, but one that won’t be solved easily.
“This is well beyond anything that we could handle within the normal annual operating budget of Grenfell Campus. We don’t carry that type of discretionary capital funding.”
He said it has to be dealt with in a targeted specific budget process where the campus would have to secure support from the broader university and possibly the province — the campus’s primary sources of funding.
Not the first closure
This is not the first time Grenfell’s pool has been closed.
During the Christmas break in 2006 about a dozen leaks were reported during routine pool maintenance.
The pool was closed for a little over a year while about 60 cracks were repaired. The work cost about $250,000.
In 2002 the pool was closed for five months while structural work on that portion of the arts and science's building housing the pool was being completed.
At the time there were no issues with the pool structure itself, however, during the closure, work was carried out to upgrade the swimming facilities that included moving the diving boards and diving blocks to the opposite side of the pool and applying a fresh coat of paint throughout.
Grenfell pool facts
• Six-hundred-plus people are registered in the aquatic programs offered at Grenfell Campus. This includes Red Cross swimming lessons, health and wellness programs, advanced aquatic programs and student related programs.
• Grenfell has contracts with the Corner Brook Rapids Swim Club, the Corner Brook Reflections Synchro Club, local businesses and school groups within the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District. These groups use the pool on a weekly basis, from two to 10 hours per week.
• Grenfell also offers rental hours for varying groups. This includes children’s birthday parties, Beaver/Scout groups, Girl Guides and community-based youth groups.
• Pool staff consists of 25 part-time employees. This includes student assistants and community instructors.
Source: Grenfell Campus
Just before lunch the university announced the 40-year-old pool would close in the spring of 2016 for an indefinite period of time because it is in need of major repairs.
“The pool is in the situation where we have to find an investment of $1.8 million to rehabilitate the pool to make it operational in a long-term sense,” said Bradshaw, the campus’s associate vice-president of administration and finance.
He said it’s a technical deferred maintenance issue that has reached the point where it can’t be put off any longer.
The pool deck, the concrete slab that supports the pool, has concrete falling off it and the rebar that gives the structure its integrity is corroding.
It’s something the university first identified eight or nine years ago. It wasn’t a major concern at the time, but over the last few months Atlantic Consultants carried out a full assessment of the pool to provide the university with an understanding of the situation.
The recommendation of the consultant is that it needs to be repaired. Based on the consultant’s report there is no immediate concern for patrons using the pool, and so operations will continue to the end of the winter semester in mid-April.
In terms of what the closure will mean to the university’s bottom line, Bradshaw said the pool does makes some revenue, but its operation is more or less subsidized from the campus’s budget.
“That’s the reality of pools in general that they don’t make money. Very few operations have full cost recovery.”
The closure, however, will have an impact on the community.
Some 600 people use the pool and it’s not known if the Arts and Culture Centre pool will be able to support those seeking an alternate location.
“It’s a well-used facility from that perspective,” said Bradshaw. “It’s a facility that brings people to campus that might not otherwise come to campus, and we would regret if that situation weren’t able to continue in the future.”
Bradshaw said this will be an active issue for the campus, but one that won’t be solved easily.
“This is well beyond anything that we could handle within the normal annual operating budget of Grenfell Campus. We don’t carry that type of discretionary capital funding.”
He said it has to be dealt with in a targeted specific budget process where the campus would have to secure support from the broader university and possibly the province — the campus’s primary sources of funding.
Not the first closure
This is not the first time Grenfell’s pool has been closed.
During the Christmas break in 2006 about a dozen leaks were reported during routine pool maintenance.
The pool was closed for a little over a year while about 60 cracks were repaired. The work cost about $250,000.
In 2002 the pool was closed for five months while structural work on that portion of the arts and science's building housing the pool was being completed.
At the time there were no issues with the pool structure itself, however, during the closure, work was carried out to upgrade the swimming facilities that included moving the diving boards and diving blocks to the opposite side of the pool and applying a fresh coat of paint throughout.
Grenfell pool facts
• Six-hundred-plus people are registered in the aquatic programs offered at Grenfell Campus. This includes Red Cross swimming lessons, health and wellness programs, advanced aquatic programs and student related programs.
• Grenfell has contracts with the Corner Brook Rapids Swim Club, the Corner Brook Reflections Synchro Club, local businesses and school groups within the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District. These groups use the pool on a weekly basis, from two to 10 hours per week.
• Grenfell also offers rental hours for varying groups. This includes children’s birthday parties, Beaver/Scout groups, Girl Guides and community-based youth groups.
• Pool staff consists of 25 part-time employees. This includes student assistants and community instructors.
Source: Grenfell Campus
