The Town of Princeton continues to discuss the future of swimming in the community.
At the June 18 regular meeting of council, former mayor and current town councillor Randy McLean expressed his concerns about the lack of swimming participation among youth in Princeton, highlighting the need for a new indoor pool to accommodate the community and region.
McLean recently attended a swim meet in Merritt where 26 swimmers from Merritt and 40 from Princeton participated. Aside from the lack of participation, McLean recalled that it was what community pool workers told him that shocked him the most香蕉视频直播攖hat the most frequent users of the pools were seniors.
"Put that together with the fact that with the mine, the mill and other smaller industries, there are over 1,400 workers in our town, many with families," he said. "A pool adds to the amenities of workers who are considering coming to work and live here."
McLean added that an indoor pool was the most requested recreational amenity in the recent questionnaire that was handed out to residents, and he knows that more children in the community would become involved in swimming if there were better access to it.
"We need to do something about a pool, an indoor pool that's available to kids, seniors and everyone else all year long," he said. "I came away from that swim meet with the thought of never stopping trying to achieve a new pool someday in our future."
McLean also said that housing is still the town's number one priority.
The current Centennial Outdoor Pool in Princeton is nearing the end of its life, with the next closest pools being over an hour away in Merritt and Penticton. The pool is used by the swim club in the summer as well as by aquatic programs such as swim lessons and Aquafit, so a replacement would be highly supported by the town despite being a financial and operational challenge.
The pool is also 25 yards, 22.86 metres, instead of the official length of 25 metres, meaning no official swim meets can be held in Princeton.
The town has discussed the pool many times in the past, and it is highlighted as one of the key infrastructure projects that are lacking in the 10-year recreation master plan, but no concrete ideas or solutions have been put in place.