Wascana Pool, Regina’s highly anticipated new community asset, was recently inaugurated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Government of Saskatchewan and the city.
The Wascana Pool renewal project cost $16.4 million. The Government of Saskatchewan provided $12 million in funding through the Municipal Economic Enhancement Program (MEEP), and the city contributed the remaining $4.4 million.
Local Anishnaabe-Saulteaux artist from the Key First Nation, Larissa Kitchemonia, also spoke at the event. Kitchemonia designed the entrance gate, a metal showpiece inspired by the land on which Wascana Park sits and acknowledges the treaty quote, “As long as the sun shines, and the grass grows and the river flows.”
The celebration also included a commitment to bury a time capsule on the site before the end of the season. The time capsule will commemorate the spirit and memories of the old Wascana Pool that served the community for more than 70 years and document the opening of the new Wascana Pool.
Attendees enjoyed the facility’s many contemporary amenities including waterslides, a beach-entry leisure pool, a lazy river, a lap pool and diving tank, a hot tub, a climbing wall, and a concession operated by The Bannock House. Residents also enjoyed the accessible and inclusive playground outside the pool facility.
“Our provincial government was proud to invest $12 million toward the City of Regina’s Wascana Pool Renewal project, which provides residents and visitors a great recreational opportunity to join with friends and family to beat the prairie heat,” says Saskatchewan’s government relations minister, Don McMorris. “Thanks to the facility’s inclusive and accessible design, this completed project certainly makes a big splash and I encourage everyone to visit the new and improved Wascana Pool in the heart of the Queen City.”
