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Terrace, B.C. receives over $4 million for pool overhaul

A Federal Gas Tax grant application was successful and mayor Carol Leclerc says residents can expect new workout, change rooms, better water

Major upgrades are coming to the Terrace Aquatic Centre as the city has received the entire multi-million dollar amount it applied for last year through the Federal Gas Tax Fund.

The $4.3 million will go towards constructing a new workout room on the northwest corner, as well as installing a family change room, adding wheelchair accessibility to the pools, and special UV filter system to reduce reliance on chemicals in the water, which will also be made level with the pool deck.

“It's fabulous news,” said mayor Carol Leclerc by phone from her vacation room in Hawaii. “The biggest score we have ever had.”

“There were only 57 projects across [B.C.], and we got one,” she added.

The current pool was nearing the end of its life, and Leclerc says the upgrades will mean another 30 to 40 years of enhanced usability.

The city already has upgrade designs in hand that were commissioned in 2012 to help guide the project, however, it is putting out a request for proposals to finalize the design and then for the renovations which will mean shutting down the pool for an extended period.

She said the timeline for the project has yet to be finalized, but that construction could begin as early as late 2016 and potentially be finished in 2017, depending on how the project tendering process goes.

The total amount given out by the federal government was $73.3 million for 57 capital and capacity building projects in B.C. communities.

Also in the northwest, Smithers received $4 million for improvements to its airport terminal, and Prince Rupert and Port Edward received grants for under $100,000 for smaller projects.