The Rimbey Aquatic Centre should splash into summer on the May long weekend.
Community development officer Cindy Bowie said the pool should be ready to open on schedule.
“Everything should be a go by Friday, May 19th,” she said.
Unfortunately, the spray park, which has been closed for some time, will remain closed until early June.
Bowie said Moore Construction is working hard on the spray park and she is confident their work will pay off.
“It won’t be open the same time as the pool and we have water regulations to be followed the health inspector needs to give his okay, but it should be up and running well for this year,” she said.
During 2017 budget deliberations council decided that the spray park needed to be demolished as it was continually breaking down. At that time, council decided to add a fence around the area to increase the picnic space for the pool users and add two water features to the beach area of the existing outdoor pool.
The amount budgeted for this project was $86,000.
However, at the April 10 council meeting the decision to demolish the park was re-visted and council decided to spend the money earmarked for demolition plus another $14,000 to repair the park.
Fencing was originally included in the budget, however with the repair costs coming in at around $91,500, there will not be enough funds available for the fencing.
Council, at its meeting, Monday, May 8, agreed to pay for the fence with funds taken from recreation reserves. The cost will run between eight and nine thousand dollars.
As the spray park was slated for demolition, entrance fees were not discussed during budget deliberations.
Mayor Rick Pankiw said he had checked with other municipalities and noted that no one charges a fee for their spray park.
Council discussed the possibility of lifeguards supervising the spray park, but it was determined that children under three need to be kept within arm’s length of an adult.
Council agreed the spray park needed to be fenced so it could be kept separate from the pool.
The Aquatic centre includes a junior Olympic five-lane outdoor pool, two hot tubs, a spray park and a 4,600 square-foot office/change rooms.
This year the aquatic operator will be Jonathan Miller. A team of lifeguards has been hired to keep a vigilant eye on the participants, ensuring everyone remains safe and happy.
For more information contact the centre at aquatics@rimbey.com or call them at 403-843-2437. Information call also be found at www.rimbey.com