Mayor Ken Sim has vowed to use all the city resources at his disposal to "eliminate" the COVID-era reservation system at Kits Pool following what he described as "deliberate inaction" on the part of the Park Board.
Park Board Commissioner Marie-Claire Howard tried to get a motion calling for its removal heard during Monday night's meeting, but Chair Laura Christensen ruled that it "did not qualify as urgent business."
"Last night, the Park Board chose delay over action, and Vancouver residents are the ones paying the price," Sim wrote in a press release.
"Despite overwhelming public feedback calling for the immediate removal of the outdated Kits Pool advance booking system, the motion to scrap it was delayed until September 15, well after the pool closes for the summer. That’s not accountability, that’s deliberate inaction."
He declared that as a result, he will be "actively exploring all options with City staff to eliminate the advance booking system and bring back easy, drop-in access for everyone."
"Vancouver residents deserve better: they want a system that works," Sim continued. "They deserve easier access to our swimming pools, parks, and facilities ... What we have seen with Kits Pool is a reminder of a bigger problem: the Park Board itself. It continues to operate with limited accountability and with little regard for what residents are actually asking for.
He cited the Stanley Park Train debacle and "wasting millions of dollars on plans that are never actioned" as further evidence of the board's futility.
Sim then turned his attention to the province, which has failed to oversee the movement of the Park Board into City Hall.
"We are paying the price with long wait times and limited to no access to Kits Pool because Premier David Eby is either unwilling or unable to follow through on his repeated commitment to transition the Park Board into City operations," he lamented. "His inaction will continue to cost Vancouver taxpayers tens of millions of dollars and will result in disappointments like Kits Pool."