A community-driven proposal to temporarily repair the Thames Pool fell one vote short of sparing the pool from decommissioning.
On Tuesday, Councillor Skylar Franke presented a motion by the Old South Community Organization (OSCO) to fundraise most of the $2.23 million to temporarily repair the pool so it could serve the community until a new aquatic facility is designed and constructed in the area.
Specifically OSCO suggested:
- Repair Thames Pool based on Option 2 with funds drawn primarily from private sources
- With pool repairs underway, city staff would work in conjunction with Old South and surrounding communities to identify a new pool location and develop a new pool/community space
- Pending community and city approval, construction of the new pool/community space would begin, at which point Thames Pool’s current location would slowly be decommissioned
- With the full decommission of the pool’s original location, community consultation would begin to develop new uses for the floodplain …