Weâre only just now seeing the final remnants of winter snowbanks melt off, but already this spring Western Manitobans have gotten a glimpse of big upgrades to summer recreation options between the ambitious floating water park planned for Minnedosa and a temporary inflatable water park on the way to the Keystone Centre grounds for six weeks this summer. Now last week the initial thoughts were revealed behind the potential for a much improved permanent outdoor aquatics facility for Brandon in the coming years.
At last Mondayâs come-and-go Recreation open house it was shared that as part of the process being undertaken in building an updated Recreation Master Plan itâs been identified that Brandonâs two outdoor pools are past their âbest beforeâ dates and that there is appetite for a much improved outdoor aquatics facility within the city in the future that may include amenities such as water slides, splash areas and lane swimming.
It was noted that many folks from within Brandon choose to drive to facilities in nearby towns for such amenities with Sourisâ pool (pictured above) profiled in a case study.
At this point in the process of drafting the Recreation Plan it would seem very premature to talk certainties and timelines when so many decision-makers would have to weigh so many priorities, but such a project definitely looks to be working its way onto the radar. What was seen at the open house is expected to flow into a draft new Recreation Master Plan that will be presented to City Council later in the spring. Should all go according to whatâs been outlined and council accepts the recommendation, the first step toward a new facility would be a feasibility study that would look at potential designs and locations and presumably provide guidance on what kind of scale is realistic in a future facility and perhaps what kind of user fees might be realistic to help fund that scale.
The full document from the open house can be read at this link.
The topic of outdoor aquatic options in Brandon has been a recurring one in discussion threads, most recently this one last September where desire for a Souris, Virden or Portage-esque facility was subject of chatter.
Photo: Town of Souris/Keywest Photo Image by Design