Provincial funding is making a big splash for a Lumby recreational facility desperate for repairs.
A $400,000 Towns for Tomorrow grant has been awarded to the village, with most of the funds going towards a new liner at the outdoor swimming pool.
“It was becoming a money pit,” said Mayor Kevin Acton of the liner’s condition.
“We tried patching it but the bottom was so rough and kids were cutting their feet.”
The current liner is about 13 years old, and holes appeared within the first week of the pool opening in spring 2010. Upwards of $80,000 has been spent repairing the liner in the last five or six years.
Besides the liner, other changes to the pool will include electric timers, programmable thermostats and motors, and renovations to the pool change rooms.
Of the $400,000, funds will also go towards a new condenser and dehumidifier at the curling club and at Pat Duke Arena.
The total cost for all three projects is $524,525, with the remainder coming from Lumby, rural Lumby and Cherryville taxpayers.
“It’s a community effort and we all co-operate together,” said Rick Fairbairn, rural Lumby director and chairperson of the White Valley Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee.
Eric Foster, Vernon-Monashee MLA, believes senior government funding is essential to reduce the burden on local taxpayers.
“Without the province’s help, a lot of these projects wouldn’t get done,” he said.
As a Lumby resident, Foster knows how popular the pool is during the hot weather.
“Adults use it in the morning and the kids are all over here after school,” he said.
With short-term needs addressed, the jurisdictions in the parks function will now look at putting money into reserves for future recreational facilities.
“The be-all-and-end-all is the 10-year recreational plan and to start fundraising,” said Tracy Williamson, a Lumby councillor.
“Do we put in a water park or do we move towards a new arena or pool?”
It’s anticipated that work on the pool will be done at the end of the summer.
Other North Okanagan communities have also received Towns for Tomorrow grants from the provincial government.
Enderby is receiving $400,000 for implementation of a water conservation plan.
The plan will include the installation of 422 residential water meters and 12 apartment meters.
The Regional District of the Central Okanagan will get $400,000 for improvements to the Killiney Beach water system.
