Celebrating Rossland's pool and its 93rd birthday
By Contributor
On Friday, August 22, the Rossland Heritage Pool Society celebrated Rossland Pool’s 93rd Birthday; ours is the oldest continuously operating outdoor pool in BC.* The community came out to support the pool and many enjoyed the toonie swim put on by Out of the Cellar.
After 93 years, the pool is suffering from old age and needs some care and attention. At the beginning of the summer one of its two boilers failed, with a replacement cost of $30,000. Both boilers need to be replaced to function properly, and City staff and the Society are thinking creatively on how to fund new boilers.
The story of Rossland’s pool is memorable and historically significant. Built by volunteers, with loaned equipment from Cominco and materials donated or fundraised locally, the pool was opened to great fanfare back in 1932. Look for more of its story at the Rossland Museum and Discovery Centre. Today, Rosslanders continue to have deep ties to the pool.
There are reasons to close the pool altogether, but there are many more reasons to keep it going.
Its prime location in downtown Rossland makes it accessible for kids and seniors who do not drive and for noon hour swimmers. A few days ago, the Times Colonist published an article titled Vibrant Communities Need Access to Public Swimming Pools. Many reasons were cited about why public pools should be prioritized. A sample:
. . . it’s possible that closing the pool “to save money” would shift costs onto our health-care system, first-responders, and harm the residents who need our support.
The true cost of closure is measured not just in dollars, but in lost wellness, frayed social ties, and over-heated, vulnerable children and seniors. Local leaders, YMCA board, and private sector champions: Please find a way to work together to keep the pool open over the long term.
There is a good opportunity to explore partnerships with provincial health agencies, philanthropic foundations, and the corporate sector, as well as to tap federal climate-adaptation grants that fund community cooling infrastructure.
It’s equally important to recognize how essential swimming and water safety knowledge are to a community. They are life skills that can potentially save a life. As the 13 local physicians wrote in their letter to the Rossland City Council last year, “Drowning is a leading cause of unintentional injury and death among children, and swimming lessons have been shown to prevent or lessen these impacts. Research indicates that formal swimming lessons can reduce the risk of drowning by up to 88% for children aged 1-4.”
Having more people trained locally in CPR and life saving, as our many young life guards are, also enhances community safety. Having to travel to Warfield and Trail would provide barriers in terms of both availability and accessibility to our community and to different demographics.
Back to the Rossland Pool, it’s worth noting that not all engineers agree that replacement is the only option. There are other ways to keep this valuable amenity in the community. While these are explored, it’s imperative to keep it going.
In the interest of recreation, fitness, fun and with community spirit we are working hard and thinking creatively to continue to keep the pool open for future summers.
If you want to support the work of the Rossland Heritage Pool Society, you can write a letter to the Rossland City Council telling them that you value having a local pool. https://rossland.ca/
You can also attend our events (upcoming dance at the Legion on Oct. 4 at 7 pm) and buy our merchandise! Or make a donation. Contact savethepoolrossland@gmail.ca
*Vancouver’s Kitsilano Pool was opened a year earlier in 1931 but was closed and rebuilt in 1979. It also had extensive repairs in 2018. It has also been closed until recently after damage to the walls following the King Tides in 2022.
