Construction delays push the opening of $32 million new Coquitlam outdoor swimming pool to 2025

Avid outdoor swimming pool seekers in Metro Vancouver will have to wait a while longer to enjoy the new Mundy Park Pool.

Due to construction delays, the City of Coquitlam formally announced this week that the significant renovation and expansion of the 1972-built Spani outdoor swimming pool will reach and completion and open for the 2025 operating season.

When construction first began in Spring 2023, it was anticipated the new facility would be ready for an opening in Summer 2024.

“The City is disappointed the pool will not be opening in time for the summer season and acknowledge the impact this delay has on our community members,” reads a bulletin by the municipal government, with the construction issues described to be “unexpected and unavoidable circumstances.”

The $32-million project involves a complete renovation of the existing 25-metre, eight-lane lap pool, along with the construction of a new additional secondary pool for leisure use, including a shallow beach entry, splash area, and lazy river.

Other features include a new warming/hot whirl pool close to the forest edge, and greatly improved facilities for events such as competitions, including expanded deck spaces for spectator seating, a lawn area for lounging, and a concession space.

mundy park pool 655 hillcrest street coquitlam outdoor pool

Artistic rendering of the new Mundy Park Pool at 655 Hillcrest Street, Coquitlam. (HCMA Architecture & Design/Faulkner Browns Architects/City of Coquitlam)

Additionally, the upgraded design incorporates accessible universal change rooms (including gendered and non-gendered washrooms, lockers, and showers), accessible universal year-round Mundy Park public washrooms, a multipurpose room for workshops and training, and an improved drop-off and pick-up area.

All of this involves demolishing the facility’s previous buildings to construct a new larger support building for such new and improved supporting uses, including new energy-efficient equipment.

Vancouver-based HCMA Architecture & Design and UK-based Faulkner Browns Architects, which has its only international office in Vancouver, designed the pool overhaul.

The project is supported by the federal and provincial governments with $4.4 million in combined funding, with the municipal government covering the lion’s share.

In addition to providing the half-century old pool with a much-needed overhaul, the upgrades will significantly increase the facility’s capacity, with up to 100% more drop-in swimmers and up to 50% more swimming lessons than the old pool was able to accommodate. For decades, this pool has also been used by the Coquitlam Sharks Swim Club for youth, and it hosts competitions.

Previous condition:

Existing condition of Spani Outdoor Pool. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

Concept for the revitalized and expanded Spani Outdoor Pool. (HCMA/City of Coquitlam)

Mundy Park Pool, previously known as Spani Outdoor Pool, is located on the west side of Mundy Park near the Laurentian Belaire neighbourhood.

Its address is 655 Hillcrest Street, with the entrance into the parking lot located near the intersection of Foster Avenue and Wilmot Street.

To mitigate the impact to summertime aquatic recreation opportunities due to the construction delays, the City of Coquitlam is offering a number of alternative free and low-cost activities this summer, such as free admission at Eagle Ridge Outdoor Pool on the west side of Coquitlam Town Centre.

As well, the municipal government is providing discounted youth programs, pop-up inflatable waterslides and slip-and-slides at select parks, and extended hours for municipal residents at the new Coquitlam Bettie Allard YMCA (next to SkyTrain Burquitlam Station), which features an indoor pool.