Since this is the first whitewater pool in a river in Quebec, stricter rules are imposed: despite its dimensions of 24.4 m by 12.2 m, including two lanes, the pool can only accommodate 25 swimmers at a time, supervised at all times by two lifeguards. All children 13 and under must be accompanied in the water by an adult and those 10 and under must wear a life jacket. It is even recommended that adults who are unable to swim a distance of 50 m in deep water wear a life jacket; jackets of different sizes are also available at the dock. Swimming underwater and under the docks, as well as diving, is also prohibited.
Julie Pelletier, head of the recreation and community life department, acknowledges that these rules are rigid, but that the city could adjust over the summer. Even the bather capacity could be revised.
As for the opening hours of the free facility for all, it is aligned with those of the canoe rental service offered by the OBC Canoe Club, collaborating for a second consecutive year with the City. Belœil Mayor Nadine Viau is open to extending the hours if there is demand. Moreover, the shortage of lifeguards is not an issue for this pool, on the contrary. “There is a craze among lifeguards and we even have a waiting list!” she assures.
Photo François Larivière | The Regional Eye ©
Answer to a need
This whitewater pool project responds to the conclusion of the recreational infrastructure needs study that there is a lack of a public pool in the Belœil area, without incurring the multi-million dollar costs that a pool typically entails. The resolution adopted at the June 25 public meeting indicates an amount of $140,500 for this pilot project, an amount equivalent to “two and a half days of snow removal,” the mayor puts into perspective.
“At first, we were looking at a bigger project, but it would have taken years of study to obtain the authorization certificates. Then, we had the idea of using our 300 m2 of authorized docks and the ministry confirmed that their authorization remained valid; this allowed us to carry out this project at low cost and in a short period of time,” comments Claudia de Courval, Director of the Engineering Department in Belœil.
The Rivières Foundation and the Lifesaving Society worked closely with the City to help it bring this pilot project to fruition so quickly, notes Julie Pelletier.
Ms. Viau defends herself against the fears expressed about safety since the project was announced. “Some people think that this is not a finished project, even though we have completed several stages over the last year. Once we saw that the water quality was swimmable, we moved forward with the proposal for this pilot project and we had so many requests to make, both to the Ministry of the Environment and to Fisheries and Oceans Canada and even to the Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ). Until just a few days ago, we were still waiting for the final authorizations to be sure that we could move forward, and that is why we were not able to make the announcement gradually and earlier to the population,” she explains.
In recent weeks, the facilities have been set up and some people have already taken advantage of the opportunity to jump into the water. The City recognizes that it would be impossible to prevent everyone from swimming outside the permitted hours and is instead focusing on awareness raising and clear signage.
Possible improvements
As part of this pilot project, the City wants to test the interest of its population in this proposal, evaluate the technical aspects necessary for its operation and identify ways to improve the project to possibly make it permanent.
The City also wants to give its citizens access to water again, even those who don’t want to swim in the whitewater pool. “We’re moving into the Richelieu and imposing something other than motorboats. It’s going to force people to slow down and share this space. We hope that our neighbours on the other side of the river will do the same! Many came to see us when we told them about the project to ask for our recipe,” assures Nadine Viau.
She also wants to break down prejudices about the quality of the water in the river, which has a bad reputation that is no longer justified according to tests carried out during the summer of 2023, which concluded that, most of the time, it is quite possible to swim there. Belœil is renting, throughout the pilot project, a ColiMinder device used to determine the quality of the water almost in real time.
“We are the envy of all the beaches, which generally have to wait three days to find out if the water was OK or not!” says Ms. Viau. Claudia de Courval does not know what the summer of 2024 will look like, but if there is no heavy rain leading to too many overflows in the Richelieu, she expects water to be suitable for swimming 90% of the time during the pilot project.
Throughout the pilot project, Belœil wants to get its citizens’ opinions on their experience. A survey must be made available online at beloeil.ca/eaux-vives.
What impact for restaurateurs?
Mayor Nadine Viau maintains that the whitewater pool will have a very positive effect on the merchants of Vieux-Belœil, including the restaurateurs nearby on Richelieu Street. “We met with the restaurateurs who seem excited about the project,” she comments.
The owners of the Janick restaurant, next door to the pool, have a reservation, however. “We are happy because it is a project that is in good taste and creates an interesting concept to bring people to Old Beloeil. But it is a shame that it takes away parking spaces and spaces for boats to dock. We know that there is already a parking issue in Old Beloeil and we are taking away about ten more spaces,” comments Arnaud Nadeau.
To his knowledge, his restaurant was not approached before the city’s decision was made, which he deplores since the two businesses directly affected by the pool are Janick and Brasseurs du Moulin. “But if the city is listening and proactive, so much the better,” he adds, hoping that the city will backtrack and still allow motorized boats to stop at the municipal wharf.
Divided opinions in the council
The regular session of June 25 was very tense and emotional (see text on page 6), particularly on the issue of the whitewater pool. While Mayor Nadine Viau and her party’s elected officials greatly praised the benefits of this project, those in the opposition expressed several reservations. In particular, Councillor Martin Robert, who requested a vote on the issue, acknowledged that it was an “innovative idea” that “meets a need”, but that the amount for the pilot project was much higher than expected, which “is expensive” for opening hours limited to 4 hours per day, according to him.
His colleague Vincent Chabot added that the safety of the facilities was not comparable to what is done in Copenhagen, a city that most of Belœil’s elected officials visited recently and which has had many whitewater pools for 25 years. The resolution was finally adopted by 5 votes to 4.
