Kitsilano Pool Is Nearing Its End. What Comes Next?

This summer might be the last chance for Vancouverites to soak in the old Kitsilano Pool before renovations ramp up. After years of storm damage and costly repairs, city officials are now considering options for the pool’s replacement.

For the past three years, the 46-year-old pool’s life has been in question. In 2022, the pool faced severe damage due to winter storms, which pushed back its opening for the season into July.

The following year, damage from previous seasons caused the pool to leak 30,000 litres of water per hour.

In 2024, despite reports that the pool was to be closed for the entire summer, Mayor Ken Sim stated that opening the pool was a priority. The pool was then open in the last month of summer after repairs.

“We’re in this situation where we’re dealing with a pool that’s actively failing. It’s been seriously damaged, it’s old, it’s leaking,” said Laura Christensen, a Vancouver Park Board commissioner. “[But] we’re keeping it running. I don’t think anyone wants us to close it right now.”

Last year, Vancouver city council tossed the pool a lifeline in a unanimous vote to renew and replace it.

The pool has officially entered the first phase of a multi-year replacement plan. Vancouver city council is conducting a feasibility study and gathering public input through a survey that remains open until July 14.

From there, the renovation will be under consideration for Vancouver’s 2027-30 capital plan. Within that timeline, the pool’s new design could be ready by 2027, and then construction would follow in the years to come, Christensen explained.

“We might see a new pool in about five years,” said Christensen. “That’s the best-case scenario. You never know what happens with funding and everything, but that’s the general timeline.”

What will the new pool look like?

According to the City of Vancouver, there are two key considerations for this renovation project.

One is the Showboat, a community stage area that is nestled right next to the current pool. Due to the Showboat’s proximity to the pool, it might also have to move. However, the website states this may provide a chance to modernize the stage along with the pool.

The other is maintaining access to the surrounding park area. The pool’s current spot near the shore makes it vulnerable to sea level rise and winter storms, so it needs to be moved back from the ocean’s edge. However, its new location won’t interfere with the other amenities already present in the park, such as the tennis courts and the grassy field.

“We’re not planning to move it too far,” explained Christensen. “But where it is right now is very close to the shoreline and subject to sea level rise and damage from storms.”

Two storms in the winter of 2021 and early 2022 caused long-lasting damage to the pool, when high tides combined with high winds pushed sea water into the pool and slammed driftwood logs against the surrounding seawall.

As the climate continues to change, the City of Vancouver wants to ensure that Kitsilano Pool will be able to weather the storm.

“It needs to be designed in a way that it can withstand whatever the future brings in terms of climate and storms,” said Christensen. “So that it doesn’t get damaged in the future to the point where we’re having to pay to repair it.”

Christensen said the park board also wants to modernize the pool space. She said the pool’s large size and shallow depth are not necessarily ideal.

“It’s an awkward shape from some perspectives. If we have an opportunity to optimize the shape and get more use out of certain areas, that might be a good opportunity.”

The pool has gone through big changes before: the fill-and-draw pool that was first opened in 1931 had to be replaced by an enclosed pool in the 1970s because of poor water quality. While there was a suggestion at the time to break up the big pool into three smaller ones to reduce maintenance costs, city residents pushed elected leaders to make sure the new pool would be the same size and shape.

Another aging pool, the Vancouver Aquatic Centre, also needs to be renovated, at a cost of $175 million. To save costs, city councillors and the park board made the unpopular decision to reduce the size of the pool, shortening the lanes from the current 50-metre length to 25 metres for the planned new pool.

Today, the city wants to know what amenities residents would like to see at the new Kitsilano Pool. You can give feedback by filling out the Shape Your City survey.

Possibilities include new fitness centres and wellness options, such as saunas, a splash pad and additional areas for programs like aquafit, as well as the potential for a deeper pool. The renovations also include the possibility of improved food and beverage concessions.

Where will the funding for the pool come from?

The funding for the new pool renovation will come from the city’s 2027-30 capital plan. It is a four-year plan that invests in the city’s infrastructure and amenities, Christensen explained.

Money for the capital plan comes from a combination of city contributions, such as property taxes and parking fees, development contributions and partner contributions from other levels of government, non-profits and philanthropists.

For projects like Kits Pool, the public can vote on whether they would like the city to borrow funds for the project. A voting question for these types of projects is typically included at the end of the election ballot, Christensen explained.

The park board doesn’t yet know how much it will cost to replace the pool, but a smaller outdoor pool in Coquitlam that opened this summer cost $32 million.

While the full details of the renovation are still being shaped, one thing is clear: the new version of Kits Pool will be a significant change.

“I don’t think we’re planning to replace it exactly like for like,” said Christensen. “We’re going to take this as an opportunity to improve it and make it modern and as good as it can be.”