We need to stop thinking of it as the Natatorium and the Phyllis Dewar outdoor pool.  That was the recommendation in a consultants report on the two facilities presented to city council Monday night.

Daniel Reeves of aodbt, explained the indoor pool will never be a pool again and it would be $6 million to try and make the building into a safe public space, so his suggestion was focus on saving the outdoor pool.

"The Natatorium doesn't need a dime into it to leave it as it is and then there would be a significant cost to bringing it up to being a usable assembly facility. The (outdoor) pool itself, there are some mechanical issues that need to be addressed."

But those issues are nothing that can't be fixed according to Reeves.  The pool basin is usable, the location can't be beat and with some planning, the entire project could revitalize the park. The other half of that plan would be to build a stand alone facility next to the outdoor pool for the pumps, change rooms, concession and common area.

If the city went with a 25 metre pool rather than the current 50m pool, the other half could be changed into more of a leisure component with a shallow beach type pool and lazy river. However, the cost would be around the $13.8 million mark.

Right now, the Nat is being used as storage and the recommendation is to continue with that but to minimally heat the building. That option would allow the city to focus on the useable pool.

"Currently, they're piggy backing one another, but once you separate them then you've got this new, robust system that allows you to rejuvenate that pool and capture all of that excitement and fun that the pool has without being stifled by the fact that there's this whole other, concluded and difficult conversation."

While Reeves admits the Natatorium would be an amazing space to use as a public gathering place for a farmers market or office space, there would be a lot of work that needs to be done to bring it all up to code.

Other options included renovating the entire 50m pool with new components and a stand alone pump house with change rooms and concession at a cost of $15.6 million but that still doesn't include any work to the Nat

The third option and least desirable, according to Reeves, was to build a brand new outdoor pool beside the Kinsmen Sportsplex. The issue there would be the fact that it would still be a facility of it's own and you wouldn't be able to tie into the current pool system since that facility can't handle the extra water treatment capacity, so all you're really sharing would be change rooms and the front desk. That option comes with a $15 million price tag.

All told, the three options range from $13.8 million up to $21 million depending on where, what and if the Natatorium is to be renovated.  City Council has decided that this is not a project they should be tackling considering an election is coming up this fall so the report was referred to the capital budget discussions this winter and will be an item for the newly elected council to make a decision on.

For the time being, Reeves explained the city can continue operating the pool and Nat as is, but there's always the risk of the mechanical system failing at some point.