Silver Springs outdoor dive pool to reopen June 16

Awell-loved outdoor community dive pool is scheduled to reopen in northwest Calgarythis month, after more than two years of construction delays and repairs.

The Silver Springs Pool, complete with a deep end for diving, should be open to the public as early as June 16, pending a few lastinspections.

The newly renovated, 33-metre-long basin includes five lanes for swimming and features a one-metre springboard and a three-metre platform.

An accessibility ramp has also been added at the shallow end of the pool tomakeentry and exit easier for people with reduced mobility.

Staff areconducting preliminary testing this week to identify blind spots and the best vantage points for lifeguards before opening the basin to the public, said pool manager Olivia Graham.

Pool programs

The facility will host Red Cross swim lessons and deep water workouts throughout the summer, according to the Silver Springs Community Association website.

The facility will also begin taking private bookings on June 19. It will be available for rentals on evenings, from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., as well as weekends, from 9 a.m. to noon.

2-year dry spell

The outdoor pool with dive tank hadbeen a well-loved fixture in the community since 1974, but the facilitywas in dire need of repairs.

When community members discovered in 2013 that the city did not intend to repairthe original dive tank, neighbourhood activists rallied to raise moneyand managedto preserve some diving features in the redesign.

The facility shut down in the fall 2015 for renovations.

Construction wassupposed to be completed in time for the pool to reopen last summer, but groundwater seepageinto the pool's basin caused majordelays.