The Access Communications Water Park is scheduled for shutdown maintenance and will be closed from July 28 through October 2 while work is completed.
The Water Park undergoes a planned shutdown every two years to allow for essential maintenance, deep cleaning, and to ensure the facility continues to meet Public Health requirements. Regular closures allow staff to perform tile repair and replacement, service pumps and related mechanical equipment, and complete necessary repairs that cannot be done while the pools are full of water.
During this year's shutdown, we will be completing a major filtration system replacement project. The existing filters, which have been in place for about 20 years, have reached the end of their lifespan and must be replaced to maintain proper water quality. These filters play a crucial role in removing debris such as skin cells, hair, and other particles from the nearly 1,000,000 liters of water in the park.
Additionally, the pool is transitioning from an ozone-based water treatment system — now outdated and difficult to maintain — to a more modern ultra-violet (UV) filtration system. This change aligns with industry trends and will help ensure efficient water sanitation while managing operational costs.
While these upgrades are necessary, they also highlight the importance of regular maintenance shutdowns to keep the water park safe, clean, and fully operational for the community. View the sections below to learn more about the filtration and UV components of this year's shutdown, and subscribe to this page to stay up-to-date on how work is progressing.
The Access Communications Water Park is scheduled for shutdown maintenance and will be closed from July 28 through October 2 while work is completed.
The Water Park undergoes a planned shutdown every two years to allow for essential maintenance, deep cleaning, and to ensure the facility continues to meet Public Health requirements. Regular closures allow staff to perform tile repair and replacement, service pumps and related mechanical equipment, and complete necessary repairs that cannot be done while the pools are full of water.
During this year's shutdown, we will be completing a major filtration system replacement project. The existing filters, which have been in place for about 20 years, have reached the end of their lifespan and must be replaced to maintain proper water quality. These filters play a crucial role in removing debris such as skin cells, hair, and other particles from the nearly 1,000,000 liters of water in the park.
Additionally, the pool is transitioning from an ozone-based water treatment system — now outdated and difficult to maintain — to a more modern ultra-violet (UV) filtration system. This change aligns with industry trends and will help ensure efficient water sanitation while managing operational costs.
While these upgrades are necessary, they also highlight the importance of regular maintenance shutdowns to keep the water park safe, clean, and fully operational for the community. View the sections below to learn more about the filtration and UV components of this year's shutdown, and subscribe to this page to stay up-to-date on how work is progressing.
Work is continuing on the water park shutdown maintenance, in addition to the filtration and UV projects. A few maintenance items being worked on include:
Calcium removal from tile throughout the water park.
Skimmer cleaning and grouting.
Repairs to the wave generator air baffles (the system that makes the waves).
Rust removal and painting of the water slide structure.
Stripping and removal of old caulking on the water slide, preparing for buffing, waxing, and resealing the joints.
Deck drain flushing.
Remove, clean, and reseal drains in the lap pool.
For the filtration and UV project:
Three filter tanks have been placed.
Work started on required piping and valve replacement
With the existing sand filters and piping now out of the way, work has started on preparing for the new UV system and filter tanks. The doors and walls around the previous ozone room have been removed to provide better access for the UV system. New concrete pads to help support the new filters have also been framed, prepared, and poured. Lots of pipes and fitting are also going in, which are crucial to keeping the water moving throughout the entire system.
Outside of the back mechanical room, cleaning and organizing on deck and in programming areas is also happening. The guard room and equipment rooms have been cleared out ready for deep cleaning and paint, the water slide has been pressure washed before getting a fresh coat of wax. Tile walls in the pool tanks have been cleaned and are ready for some tile work to happen over the next few weeks.
In just a few days the existing sand filters have been disconnected, piping removed, sand sucked out, and the tanks hauled out of the building! Now that the tanks are out of the way, work will start on coordinating the space where the new tanks will go, building some piping and connections, and preparing for concrete slabs which will hold and support the new tanks.
Our project contractor isn't wasting any time getting things rolling! The piping and connections on the existing sand filters has been removed, giving more space to get in and start removing the sand before the filters are disassembled and taken out of the building. In the meantime, the new filter tanks have arrived and are staged and ready to slide into place one the mechanical room is ready for them.
After a busy weekend of public swims and programming, the plug was pulled and the pools began draining today as we kick off the 2025 water park shutdown project. It took roughly four hours for the lap pool to drain. This was followed by draining the wave pool, and then purging all the water from the filters, pipes, and pumps.
The filtration and UV sanitization contractors also arrived on site and have begun setting up their work area.
Subscribe to this project page to stay up to date on work progress!
The Water Park UV & Filtration Project was awarded at the March 23 Council meeting. The project has been awarded to Ful-Flo Industries Ltd. with a cost of $1,164,764.92, plus applicable taxes. The scope of this project includes:
Decommissioning and removal of the existing ozone generation and fluid filtration systems.
Supply and installation of a new Ultra Violet (UV) water treatment system, including all electrical and plumbing components.
Supply and installation of new fluid filter systems, including all required plumbing components within the mechanical areas.
Testing and commissioning of all equipment.
Fluid Filtration Systems Replacement
Before moving to the water treatment portion of the pool system, water is first passed through various filters to remove material from within the water.
These filters were originally installed during the 2004 / 2005 Gallagher Centre renovation, and are now in need of replacement.
This project will remove the old fluid filters, plus the sand media which the water flows through.
Then, new fluid filters containing glass media will be installed, providing high-quality filtration by capturing smaller particles, allowing for faster back-washing and offering a longer life cycle than sand media.
Pictured below are some of the current sand filters which will be replaced as part of this project.
Converting from Ozone to UV Water Treatment
The existing ozone system was installed during the 2004 / 2005 Gallagher Centre renovation, and has been treating and sanitizing the water within the pool facility for 20 years. The ozone generating system has surpassed its life expectancy and is no longer functioning, requiring additional chemical usage and maintenance, leading to increased operational costs.
This project will remove the ozone generation and storage components, creating room for a new ultra-violet (UV) system to be installed. UV systems are less intricate, provide more cost-effective maintenance, and have less requirements for corrosion-resistant materials.
Pictured below is the ozone generator and holding tanks which will be replaced with the UV system.