Petition launched calling for Vernon's Active Living Centre to be 'fun'

An online petition has been launched in an effort to sway Vernon city council to make the Active Living Centre more fun for kids.

The $121-million recreation complex passed by referendum in the fall, but the proposed design is highly criticized by the petition sponsors who call themselves Vernon Families and Youth.

"This Active Living Centre prioritizes the needs of competitive swimmers and adults for cool-water lap swimming, an indoor walking track and exercise equipment over the needs of families and youth for a fun aquatic centre," the petition reads.

The petition goes on to say that the current design has little for older children and youth.

"There are no exciting slides, no wave pool, no lazy river run, and no FlowRider," the petition reads.

The current design does incorporate a lazy river, although the city previously confirmed it was not much bigger than the existing one.

The petition calls the proposed lazy river "pathetic."

READ MORE: Are you getting what you want from Vernon’s Active Living Centre?

The group behind the petition has also launched a survey which it says it will present to council, along with the petition, in the new year.

The petition accuses the city of not conducting a valid survey when conducting the Active Living Centre feasibility study.

"Several surveys were done, but each had clear deficiencies. The surveys either didn't properly profile the respondents, leaving open the potential for busy families to be under-represented as compared to people involved with competitive swimming, or the survey questions failed to ask about fun aquatic features," the petition reads. "A proper survey of 2,500 residents is needed, or the City of Vernon should use the well-run 2018 survey."

The 2018 city survey of 2,280 households found that people wanted a "fun leisure poll" more than any other recreation option.

However, the new Active Living Centre is scheduled to have a 50-metre eight-lane lap pool, which can be divided into three, along with a separate warm water 25-metre lap pool, and a leisure pool roughly twice the size of the existing one.

"No wave pool, no big awesome slides, no sinuous lazy river, no amazing FlowRider, no wave pool," the petition reads.

READ MORE: How Vernon's $121M Active Living Centre compares to similar projects

"City of Vernon staff claim that 'extensive consultation in 2019 and 2020 showed a 50 metre lap pool was the most desired feature' and 'the public never mentioned wanting slides.' Well, guess what - the public was never asked about exciting slides or a wave pool or a FlowRiders or a lazy river," the petition reads.

The City has repeatedly said that during public consultation the most requested item was a 50-metre lap pool, although the city has admitted it's likely to only be used once a year for a competitive swimming event.

The petition is highly critical that the $300 a year the Active Living Centre will cost the average Vernon taxpayer for a larger version of what the city already has. The petition is also critical of the proposed plan to have dozens of exercise machines and points out that multiple private gyms fill this need.

The petition can be found here.

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