The City of Nelson has announced they will re-open the Gyro Park pool on July 10.
In a post on the city’s Facebook page, they stated that due to a province-wide lifeguard shortage they had to delay the opening of the facility, which has not operated since 2019.
“Due to temporary staff shortages, the pool will be opening its doors a little later than normal this year,” they wrote. “We sincerely appreciate the patience and understanding of our amazing community as we work to fully staff the facility.”
In the past, the outdoor pool has usually opened at the end of June. Chris Johnson, the general manager of community planning, climate and infrastructure with the City of Nelson, says the delay was partially due to the amount of maintenance the city had to catch up on after being closed for four years.
“With the pool having been closed for the last few years due to COVID, maintenance took a little bit of extra effort this year, more than it typically does, to fire everything up and make sure that it’s good to go.”
He says the city and the RDCK have put in a lot of effort over the last four years to upgrade the park and facility to ensure the public can enjoy it safely.
“There’s been some changes over the last number of years with removal of the bridge over to the gazebo area. There a new bridge that’s coming in that we’ve ordered and we just wanted to ensure that that’s clean and presentable and safe for everybody,” says Johnson.
Johnson says the city felt the community’s excitement and need to have the pool open again and he is pleased to be able to provide people with the opportunity to enjoy the pool again this summer.
“All in all, I know that there’s been a tremendous amount of work to get Gyro open again for the public this summer, and we’re really excited to be able to announce that it’s opening again.”
“Any Nelsonite will tell you how valuable having Gyro pool is in the summer. It’s just such a tremendous asset to have within the city, especially as we go into summer holidays with what looks like hot, warm weather.”
The pool will be open for the public to enjoy weekdays between 1 and 6 p.m., however on Tuesday mornings the Nelson Youth Center will be hosting day camps at the pool so although it may appear to be open earlier, the public cannot use the pool before 1 p.m.