Westsyde residents want more proactive plans from city, as weekday hours set to resume at pool and fitness centre

In a September staff report, Sherri Holmes, the City of Kamloops’ Sport, Recreation and Wellness manager, said that while seven lifeguards are needed to operate both the Westsyde Pool and the Canada Games Pool, there were only four available on staff.

“That is the minimum required for basic operations at the Canada Games Pool,” Holmes wrote, noting the city focused its efforts to maintain core services at a single location – the Canada Games Pool.

“Morning closures at Westsyde Pool and Fitness Centre will allow lifeguards and Customer Relations Representatives to be reassigned to times and facilities serving a larger population, notably at the Canada Games Pool,” Holmes wrote.

Holmes said the shortage of lifeguards can be connected back to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when pools were shut down.

“We lost the majority of our senior lifeguards who had been with us for a very long time. They moved on to different careers,” Holmes said. “What we are finding is the majority of people who are applying are students. Unfortunately, those folks are unavailable during the daytime and this is where we are particularly struggling with staffing.”

Houchen told CFJC that while the WCDS has been told the city is working on a “better plan” to staff the Westsyde facility, they’ve not been given any firm assurances.

“We’re hoping for more proactive plans on what the city is planning to do to make sure that staffing levels are appropriate so that our pool stays open,” she said.

It’s not clear what that plan could look like, though Holmes told CFJC on Friday (Nov. 8) that she is working on a update.

The plan could involve the hiring of Customer Relations Representatives with first aid training, so in the event of a lifeguard shortage, the fitness centre in Westsyde isn’t forced to close as well.

“The closure of the Westsyde fitness centre is directly related to the lack of qualified first aid providers on site,” Holmes wrote in her September report. “Since Customer Relations Representatives cannot assume first aid responsibilities, as it is not currently within their job description, alternative arrangements must be identified when lifeguards are unavailable.”

“As a unionized employer, the City must adhere to collective agreement provisions and consult union representatives before significant adjustments to hiring practices. While this ensures fair labour standards, it may delay procedural changes,” Holmes added.

Houchen said that staffing proposal was discussed at a community meeting last Thursday (Nov. 6).

“This facility isn’t just specifically for leisure as these closures can affect people’s health. Some people need to use the pool or gym facilities for physical rehabilitation and those things are very important to people in our community,” Houchen said.

At this time, it’s also not clear how many lifeguards have been hired by the City of Kamloops this year, and how many of those are long-term employees with the ability to cover weekday morning shifts.

“The community in Westsyde wants to use this pool,” Houchen added. “So along that vein, its the communication from the city [that needs to improve]. You can go on their website and the hours say its open, but you get to the door there’s a note saying its not.”

“So again, we’re hoping for more of a proactive plan of what’s going to happen if they are short-staffed.”