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Orangeville Council considering funding for head walls at Alder Pool

June 9, 2022   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Orangeville is investigating the costs associated with adding head walls to the Alder Street Recreation Centre’s competitive pool.

Council voted 7-0 to direct Town staff to bring back a comprehensive report on the cost of a head wall following a presentation from Josh Hartway of the Orangeville Otters Swim Club last Monday (May 30).

He provided an overview of a head wall, which protects electronics used in tracking swimmers in competitions. The Otters have committed $90,000 to purchase a state-of-the-art timing system for Alder’s pool, and is hoping Orangeville can help cover the costs of the head walls once construction of the pool is completed, at an estimated cost of $220,000.

“When you’re putting in a high caliber pool that’s going in at Alder, it’s really kind of a no brainer to add this piece,” said Hartway.

“When you’re putting the kind of money you have into it, it’s kind of like building an ice rink without putting up the boards or scoreboard.”

He added that the addition of a timing system, head walls, and brand news pool at Alder will make Orangeville a destination for aquatic sports.

“It really comes down to having the proper space to host events, the proper space to teach swimming, we’ve got a few swimmers now that have earned some Olympic trial times and hopefully in the coming years, maybe even make it to trials or on Olympic team,” Hartway said.

To hold competitive swim meets a headwall is needed, and being able to hold large swim competitions will generate extra revenue for businesses in Orangeville, Hartway noted.

With three to four meets held over a two to three day period each year, bringing in about 1,200 families, he said the amount of revenue for hotels, grocery stores, and gas stations would be immense.

“It is a big revenue generator for the community,” Hartway remarked.

He also made note of how the $220,000 ask for the head wall is a small cost compared to what’s been spent on replacing the Alder pools overall, which is costing $5.2 million approximately.

Coun. Todd Taylor said one thing that’s always disappointed him about the Alder pool was that it hasn’t been properly set up to hold swim meets.

He asked Hartway if there’s anything else, in addition to the head walls, that might be needed to make Orangeville a destination for swim meets and run first class programs.

Hartway said this will enable the Otters to run first class swimming programs and nothing further is needed.

Coun. Joe Andrews said he’s a big believer in the Otters swim program and he’s supportive of investigating the head wall to make Orangeville more of a destination for aquatic sports.

Meanwhile Coun. Grant Peters noted that there’s a number of sports and recreation facilities in town that could also use $220,000 in improvements, and a lot could be done with that amount of money to improve baseball fields, soccer pitches, and skate parks.

He said he prefers to see a staff report on the head wall at Alder pool before voicing his support.

Coun. Lisa Post said now is the opportune time to add the head wall if that’s Council’s wishes, as construction at Alder is not yet complete.

“We’re already at a point where we’ve invested a significant amount of money into the pool and we want to make sure that it’s done the right way, and where it can be of most use and most contribution back to the community,” she said. “I think we have an opportunity to do that… I anticipate that I will be supportive once I see a staff report.”

Mayor Sandy Brown said he’d recommend that the Otters do some more outreach with service clubs in town for funding and see if they can attract more fundraising dollars while Council waits for a staff report regarding the project details and costing.

Once the report comes back to Council at a future meeting, a vote will be held to determine if the Town will cover the approximately $220,000 cost of the head wall.

Council’s next meeting is scheduled for June 13.

He also noted that the head walls are great for younger swimmers or those with a disability, since it is less tall than a usual diving block.

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