The Canada Games pool will be closed to the public for two weeks in December for a couple of reasons.

The pool will host over 500 competitive swimmers for the annual MJB Law Classic Swim Meet from Dec. 13 to 15. Following that, the pools and hot tubs will be drained as part of a bonding test ahead of an infrastructure improvement project slated for fall 2020.

To minimize impact on pool users, the hours at the Westsyde Pool will be extended to include more public swim times and additional Aquafit classes.

“We know that any closure is impactful to users, and we do our best to lessen the impact whenever possible,” said Andrew Smeaton, the City’s Aquatics Supervisor. “We’re fortunate to have another fantastic facility to accommodate not only the general public, but also our competitive swim organizations who use the pool for training.”

TCC memberships that include pool access will be extended to account for next month’s closure. One week of swimming lessons will also be impacted, and the credit for that will be applied automatically to the customers’ PerfectMind account.

Starting next fall, there are extensive infrastructure improvements – including the roof and the HVAC system – planned at the Canada Games Aquatic Centre, at a price tag of around $9 million.

In addition to extending the life of the building, the city says these updates will improve the energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and make the building more sustainable.

“Our design and construction team are looking to verify a few details that will impact scheduling costs on the project something we’re not just sure of right now, and we need a closure to look into those details,” said Capital Projects Manager Darren Crundwell. “It’s all part of the new approach we’re using to deliver this project that will give us more certainty in costs and construction schedules.”

The pool will reopen to the public on Friday, Dec. 27.