TDSB To Close 23 School Pools This Summer And 16 More Next Year

Parents and advocates have been swimming against the tide for a decade, but now it appears there are no more life lines. The Toronto District School Board has confirmed it’s planning to close 23 of the city’s school polls in an effort to save money.

The swimming facilities will be drained this June with an additional 16 going dry by June 2009. In total, 39 pools will be decommissioned over the next 14 months. Only those that host city-run programs or are used for special education classes will remain open.

“The Board regrets having to close any pools over the next 2 years. There is no question of the value of enabling children to learn how to swim and of the benefits of physical activity,” TDSB Chair John Campbell notes in a statement. “Unfortunately, the funding formula used by the Provincial Ministry of Education does not provide school boards the ability to operate and maintain pools.”

The TDSB, which is always facing a cash crunch, claims it has no choice but to mothball the pools because the province and the city have failed to provide the funds needed to maintain them. The money saved on maintenance and repairs – about $4 million – will be funneled into other areas, including increasing the number of ESL teachers needed by the board.

Parents who have worked tirelessly fighting this battle of liquid assets are stunned by the suddenness of the decision.

“This is devastating. I mean the outcry is going to be unbelievable,” contends Livia Hunter, one of the moms who tried to keep the pools afloat. “We’re losing an opportunity for our children to stay active. This is a phenomenal resource that we have that nobody’s willing to fund.”

A parent named Jane agrees. “We’ve got a wonderful resource available to us to teach children how to swim. It is folly to close school pools, functioning school pools for the lack of funding.”

This swan dive has been coming for the past ten years, after the Harris government created the funding formula, which doesn’t pay for pool upkeep. “We are in 2008. We’ve gone through this many times where there’s been the threat of school pools being closed, and yet somehow we haven’t figured out what to do,” complains Jane.

But you may not have heard the end of this seemingly endless protest yet, because demonstrators insist they’ll still be making a big splash. “We’re very upset,” confirms Glenna Dehaan of the North Toronto Aquatic Club. “We can’t believe this is happening. We have no other alternatives, no other pool alternatives for our programming to be held in.”

Students, who stand to lose the most from the shutdown, are having a hard time comprehending what’s going on with the adults behind the decision. “What about childhood obesity and all the other issues they are trying to combat?” wonders a kid named Cassie. “Closing the pools is not a good way to do that.”

Even former school trustees are condemning the move. Shelley Carroll is the city’s budget chief and knows a thing or two about finances. But she used to serve on the board and once spearheaded a campaign to stop the pool closure. She calls the new move a ‘mistake’ and ‘premature.’

And what of the province, which is being painted as the culprit in all this? The Education Minister’s office says it’s up to the Board to prioritize its spending to support students. And they don’t intend to come up with more cash.

New protests are scheduled next week and despite the fact this issue has been front and centre for years, there’s little chance supporters will let the program drown in red ink without putting up a huge fight.  

Here’s a look at which pools will close and when:

Schools identified for decommissioning in June 2008:

Elementary Schools:

Carleton Village Sr PS
Earl Grey Sr PS
Fern Avenue Jr & Sr. PS
Keele Street Jr PS & City Community Centre
Kensington Community School
Queen Alexandra Sr. PS.
Winona McMurrich Jr PS

Secondary Schools:

Bickford Centre
Central Commerce Collegiate
Central Technical School (2 pools)
Danforth Collegiate & Technical Institute
Downsview SS
Forest Hill CI
George Harvey CI
George S Henry Academy
Jarvis CI
Monarch Park
North Toronto CI
Riverdale CI
Rosedale Heights SS
SATEC @WA Porter
Ursula Franklin Academy at Western Technical

School identified for decommissioning in June 2009:

Allenby Jr PS
AY Jackson SS
Deer Park Jr & Sr PS
Glenview Sr PS
Bloor CI
Harbord CI
Humberside CI
Lawrence Park CI
Malvern CI
Northern SS
Oakwood CI
Parkdale CI
RH King Academy
Stephen Leacock CI
Western Technical-Commercial School
Westview Centennial