MOUNT FOREST – A petition to save Mount Forest’s Lion Roy Grant Community Pool that has been circulating on social media platforms demands that Mayor Andy Lennox be “held accountable” for the decision to demolish the old swimming pool.
On July 22, Wellington North council unanimously supported a motion to expedite the tendering process for the demolition, despite the fact many community members attended the meeting hoping to save the pool.
Council has been discussing the swimming pool, including its maintenance and the eventual decision for replacement, since 2015.
One resident started a petition due to her “dissatisfaction from the evident mishaps and audacious oversights by elected officials,” the petition states.
Michelle McInnis, a Mount Forest resident of three years, started the petition on July 25, three days after council’s latest decision to expedite tendering for demolition of the pool.
The petition asks council to “request and publicly disclose a detailed (cost) estimate” to repair the old pool.
McInnis told the Advertiser she feels township officials were being “resistant” or “reluctant” at the meeting.
“The thing that struck me the most … was a document that I found,” she said.
McInnis had requested from the municipality all documents regarding the pool, from the first staff report to current day.
She picked up the package town staff had created and paid a fee of $226.
“It listed the public health violations and listed some of the concern surrounding the pool,” she explained.
The particular document that shocked her was from January 2021.
According to McInnis, the pool had closed in 2021 due to public health reasons, but the document also included another reason.
“The reason they couldn’t open in 2021 was actually because of staffing,” she added. “That’s very misleading.”
The public health violations were previously listed publicly on the FAQ section on the township’s website, she acknowledged.
McInnis took issue with the staffing issues not being listed as well.
“It’s not that the pool could not be opened, it’s because they couldn’t staff it … to me that’s a bit dishonest,” she said.
Her goal is to get staff and council to estimate the cost to understand if it is feasible to “redo” or “recommission” the existing pool prior to decommissioning.
Asked if she believes the petition will change council’s decision, McInnis replied, “I do not … based on how myself and others were received at the last council meeting.”
Lennox told the Advertiser via email, “I’m sure that all of council appreciate the public interest in this project but the current feedback puts council in a bind as previous public engagement has supported proceeding with a new pool.”
He added council has every reason to respect the integrity of the previous public engagement that led to the current decision.
Lennox stated opportunities for the community to engage in the decision-making process have been “numerous.”
He noted the plan for a new pool was recommended in the township’s 2018 Recreation Master Plan and involved an open house and public survey.
“I understand that many members of the public are very concerned about the cost of the project, as council very much share that concern,” said Lennox.
He said he sees an opportunity to work with the community and “build a strong sense of community pride,” by making the project a reality.
McInnis said she has been denied the chance speak on the issue at a future meeting, as she has already appeared as a delegation on the topic.
She told Community News her husband plans to speak at the Aug. 12 council meeting.
“[This is] not over for me until the pool is decommissioned and there is a zero per cent probability of moving forward,” stated McInnis.
