The pool is quite likely to go ahead, barring some major impediment. How it will proceed is still up for debate.
Our survey showed that respondents were very much in favour of building a pool with amenities – a water slide, fitness centre, lazy river. Multiple people mentioned better change rooms in the comments, and one respondent even pleaded for the region not to “cheap out.”
Many people have already shared their opinions with local decision makers on the committee and on councils. Keeping this dialogue open will be the key to building a facility for future generations to use and enjoy.
In order to strengthen this ongoing discussion, we want pool committee to open its meetings to the public.
This would make the process more visible to the everyone, through personal attendance and meeting minutes. It would give people living in the region the opportunity to learn and become better informed when making their own personal decisions and pushing for certain elements of the aquatic facility.
One can – and some have – argued that this could mean the “naysayers” will have another space to voice their opinions.
Isn’t that what democracy is all about?
Let us be very clear. The Athabasca Advocate is in favour of the pool project. We believe there is great value in this investment for the region.
Though we have always questioned the value of building recreation complexes several kilometres away from the vast majority of residences and businesses in town, at this point, it would not make sense to build the pool far away from the rest of the facilities it would support.
Our opinion – not to blindly accept the location of the new school and pool – is not the popular one. But a newspaper’s role in society is not to be popular. We are here to hold government and its agents accountable and question the decisions they make that affect our readers.
It would be much easier to fulfill that role in the case of the pool if its committee meetings were open to the public.
