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Using the existing footprint of the facility will reduce the risk of unexpected ground settlement and the resulting additional construction costs, with the conceived project avoiding extra excavation, shoring, and structural costs.

At the outset of the project’s planning process, it was noted that the new facility would have a total floor area of about 135,000 sq. ft. — about 60,000 sq. ft. larger than the existing facility, which is roughly 75,000 sq. ft. This would have included a 125,000 sq. ft. aquatic centre and a 10,000 sq. ft. childcare facility. But this near doubling of the facility’s size is no longer being contemplated.

As well, the project isolated within this existing footprint is already $30 million over budget. The latest preliminary project cost estimate is now $170 million — up from the City of Vancouver’s capital plan figure of $140 million for the project. Park Board staff are seeking approval from the commissioners to have the Park Board cover an extra $9 million, while City staff will request Vancouver City Council’s approval to cover the remaining $21 million.

In the 2022 civic election, Vancouver residents approved a plebiscite question allowing the municipal government to borrow up to $103 million for this project. Under the terms of the approval, the City must award construction contracts and begin work before the end of 2026, or it will lose access to the $103 million.

This project to build a replacement for the Vancouver Aquatic Centre was deemed an urgent priority and expedited following a May 2022 incident when a part of the building exterior — near the main entrance into the facility — collapsed.

If this project, as proposed, receives the full green light from Park Board commissioners and the City Council, construction will begin in late 2026.

No replacement 50-metre pool

For this wide range of technical, financial, and legal deadline reasons, a key design difference is the Park Board staff’s recommendation to proceed with an eight-lane, 25-metre lap pool for the new facility’s primary tank. This is a significant size downgrade from the existing eight-lane, 50-metre lap pool and a deviation from the previously stated intent to provide this new facility with a 50-metre lap pool as this is a “destination-sized” facility in the Park Board’s network of aquatic centres.

With the facility’s footprint limitations, cost escalation, and the desire to incorporate a major leisure pool, the smaller 25-metre lap pool option is being recommended. The existing facility does not have a leisure pool.

According to Park Board staff, the facility’s existing 50-metre pool has not been used for competitions since the mid-1990s. Each year, the aquatic centre hosts a few competitions using a 25-metre configuration and two diving competitions.

The existing aquatic centre primarily attracts lap swimmers, divers, and clubs and serves as a specialized facility for training and teams, as opposed to general community leisure and recreation. As a result, the current facility operates at about 30% of its capacity due to the colder temperature, deeper depth, configuration of the 50-metre lap pool and diving pool, as well as the age and condition of the building.

In contrast, Hillcrest Aquatic Centre uses 83% of its capacity, while Killarney Pool uses 112%. Both facilities have a wider range of facilities for leisure and the general community.

Fundamentally, it is generally suggested that the tight site of Vancouver Aquatic Centre is not suitable for a high-performance, 50-metre competition pool as it also ideally should have major spectator seating areas and other related features, such as multiple competition standard lane tanks. Such features would require a bit more space.

While the lap pool would see a downgrade in size, the proposed concept provides a similarly sized or better replacement of the existing facility’s features.

It is noted that there would be two diving towers, with one tower featuring 10-metre, five-metre, and one-metre platforms and a second tower featuring 7.5-metre and five-metre platforms. This is an upgrade from the existing facility’s two diving towers with its combined three platforms of 10 metres, 7.5 metres, and five metres.

Additionally, the new facility would have two one-metre and three-metre synchro diving springboards, which is an improvement from the existing features of two one-metre non-synchro and two three-metre synchro springboards.

As for the leisure pool, it would have a stepped beach entry and ramp, a children’s play area, a hydro-therapy zone, and a shallow teaching area.

Other features of the new aquatic centre entail a 1,345 sq. ft. hot pool (nearly 14 times larger than the existing hot pool), one sauna room, one steam room (the introduction of a steam room), and a 5,000 sq. ft. fitness gym (over three times larger than the existing fitness gym). There would also be a 430 sq. ft. multi-purpose community room, which does not exist in the current facility.

The lobby area, fitness gym, and a small spectator seating area overlook the pool tanks on the lower level of the facility.

It is expected this new aquatic centre could see about 415,000 swimmers per year — up from the existing facility’s visitation of 187,000 swimmers in 2023.

A design inspired by the existing facility

Designed by Acton Ostry Architects and MJMA Architecture and Design, the proposed architectural concept clearly takes inspiration from the existing facility, but there are some major improvements that depart from the current self-enclosed shell.

An expansive glass facade on the north side of the building fronting Beach Avenue opens up a major lobby area and the fitness gym to natural light. This is in addition to a large south-facing glass facade with shading panels and a series of major skylights in the ceiling.

There would also be a wrap-around glass enclosure for the facility at ground level on the west, east, and south sides, as well as a south-facing outdoor terrace.

Preliminary artistic renderings also show a reconfiguration of the seawall’s pedestrian pathways with upgraded design features.

This new facility would extensively use mass timber materials, with interior fin-like vertical structural wall columns replicating much of the existing facility’s interior wall appearance.

Acton Ostry Architects’ previous work with designing community and recreational facilities includes the 2009-built Killarney Community Centre Ice Rink in time for the 2010 Olympics, the 2017-built new UBC Aquatic Centre, and the 2017-built National Soccer Development Centre at UBC, which is the shared training base of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, and various UBC and national teams.

In September 2023, following a bidding process, the City selected Acton Ostry Architects as the project’s lead design firm.

As for MJMA Architecture and Design, it has been involved in over three dozen aquatic centre projects worldwide, including a number of notable Canadian projects such as UBC Aquatic Centre.

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