"We Don't Need Sympathy, We Need a Pool!" Residents Ignored Again

This is from the people who have been working tirelessly to save Vancouver's Mount Pleasant Pool:

Residents of Mount Pleasant and the City of Vancouver have campaigned on behalf of Mount Pleasant Outdoor Swimming Pool over the past six years.  Park Board commissioners passed a unanimous motion in 2005 that would see the aging pool retained and would direct staff to work with the community to raise funds for a replacement pool.  But the ongoing reluctance of staff to work with the community since that time has caused a giant loss of fundraising opportunities over the past 3/12 years.  Vision, COPE, and Green Park Board candidates made election promises in the fall of 2008 that they would help the community toward our goal of building a replacement outdoor pool in Mount Pleasant Park.

Despite all the verbal support and promises, no real action has been taken toward helping the community build a replacement pool.  In fact, on June 5th Commissioner Aaron Jasper of the Vision party made statements to the Vancouver Courier (see link to article) making it clear that they now have NO INTENTION TO PRESERVE THIS VALUABLE RECREATIONAL FACILITY. http://www2.canada.com/vancouvercourier/news/story.html?id=608173f7-e5b5-46eb-92b9-165c559fc702

This shocking news followed a Park Board meeting held at Mount Pleasant Community Centre on June 1st, when Park Board commissioners promised to meet with the community to find a solution to this issue.  Aaron Jasper was especially clear in declaring that the ‘door is still open’ and ‘I will be calling community members in the next few days to arrange a meeting’.  The next time we heard anything from Aaron Japer was in this Courier article stating that after the outdoor pool at Mount Pleasant is permanently demolished, there may be a water spray park, and that residents would have to be satisfied with the indoor pool at Riley Park.  He went on to offer his sympathy to the community.

We do not need Aaron Jasper’s sympathy, we need to see some integrity and creativity on his part and that of the entire elected board.  We must demand that the promises to the community are delivered on.  There is absolutely no reason why the elected board can not refer staff to the directive of 2005 and require that staff begin work with the community immediately on raising funds for the replacement pool.  With two full-time fundraising staff at Park Board we could achieve a great deal once we are given the support we justly deserve.  If Park Board is unable or unwilling to do any work to rebuild this aging facility, they should allow the community to initiate the fundraising efforts without their unavailable paid staff.

The community centre at #1 Kingsway and the indoor pool at Riley Park will not replace the outdoor swimming pool at Mount Pleasant Park.  The only thing that will effectively replace the outdoor swimming pool at Mount Pleasant Park is an actual replacement outdoor swimming pool that will serve the growing community for another fourty to fifty years.

We need you NOW to write to Park Board and city council pbcomment@vancouver.ca; mayorandcouncil@vancouver.ca and your MLA and MP, as soon as possible.  Enough time has been wasted through false promises and we have no more time to lose!  If you have already written a letter in the past, please write again.  Park Board senior planners have claimed that they have already booked the bulldozers to demolish the pool at the end of this swim season.

Talk to your friends, family, neighbours and the media about this issue.  The time to make noise is now.  If you know of any potential benefactors who would be willing to provide the seed money to motivate Park Board into action, the time to step forward is now.

Mount Pleasant Pool opens on June 20th  - come help us make some real noise about the future of our pool

5th Annual Celebrate Mount Pleasant Pool Party July 25th  -

Celebrate Canada Day July 1st

First Annual ‘Last Outdoor Neighbourhood Pool!’ Party, Labour Day September 7th  - all events are ‘Rain or Shine”

*Pool opening hours have been cut back this year:  the pool will close between 5-6PM (the pool’s busiest time of day), and the popular aquafit classes have been cancelled.

Contact mountpleasantpool@hotmail.com if you want to get involved in this summer’s BOILING HOT campaign to save our pool starting June 20th, and join facebook ‘Friends of Mount Pleasant Pool’ for updates.