Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto said today she is relieved to see a definitive result in the Crystal Pool referendum this week.
With 21 per cent of eligible voters casting a ballot and more than 58 per cent of those voting “yes,” they authorized the city to borrow up to $168,900,000 to build a replacement for the Crystal Pool.
However, Alto noted this is a cap and does not necessarily mean the city will spend all of that.
She said it was important to get the envelop approved so staff can return to council with a proposal for the build, but the city will always look for ways to deliver the same quality of a project for less.
She also suggested the city will be looking to external sources of funding as well, with the potential for sponsors or partners in the development.
“We’re aware this is a gigantic project, and it is going to have a big price tag,” she said, saying the city is going to work to reduce the impact on taxpayers.
The other question the referendum asked voters was which location they preferred for the site: rebuild on the existing northern site, or a southern corner of Central Park.
Alto acknowledged the city is not bound to rebuild on the existing site, even though it was more popular in the referendum. She described the challenges associated with this result.
“Obviously at some point the existing pool will need to be shut down. At the same time, we kind of knew that given the condition of the existing pool that there would be a high likelihood that it would be shut down regardless of which location was chosen.”
Ultimately, she suggested it would be wise for the city to listen to the preferences of the public.
She also addressed the question of how the city will avoid running over-budget with this project.
Alto said the city has learned a lot from its experience with the Johnson Street Bridge project, adding that this project will benefit from the skills of new staff who have worked on different projects across the region.
“We’re very cognizant of the current economic challenges in which we are living,” she said.
Alto was on CFAX 1070 with Ryan Price this morning: