Calgarians rally to keep Inglewood pool open at city hall

Calgary residents still angry about the closure of a recreational swimming pool are rallying at City Hall for another demonstration on Sunday.

Multiple speakers are slated to talk about the closure of the Inglewood Aquatic Centre, including former city councillor and mayoral candidate Jeromy Farkas.

The pool is slated to be closed right before Christmas, but residents want that delayed another year.

Back in 2021, that’s precisely what the City of Calgary did — council voted to delay the closure.

But they voted in October to fast-track the closure because of all the upgrades it would need.

In May, council learned the facility required major electrical repairs. The city administration says those fixes would come with a price tag of $600,000. Operational funding rings in at $400,000 per year, according to the city, meaning closing it would save $1.4 million annually.

Council also made the call because it noted fewer people going there and other pools are available nearby. A community and sports centre is also being built in the area.

This comes after two city councillors took up the battle to keep the pool open for another year and rallygoers were out there Friday.

An urgent notice of motion was brought forward by Councillors Sonya Sharp and Andrew Chabot at Thursday’s executive committee meeting. It would look at keeping the pool open until 2026.

The proposal will come back to city hall for a vote later in the month.

The pool was originally slated to close on Dec. 22.

With files from Lauryn Heintz