December 20, 2024: Season Finale
Good Morning,
The dearth of meaningful emails in my inbox suggests many people have already stepped into extended time off. I never want to send a newsletter just for the sake of sending one out of habit, so I've got a real mix of aquatic industry stories to make it worth your while this week.
Opening of Yellowknife's new aquatic centre delayed again
The most incredible thing about this project is that it's locked in at $71m when these multi-year delays have likely resulted in substantial cost overruns to the general contractor. Contract terms & conditions matter a lot when it comes to capital projects.
Field Notes from a Gear Tester
Patagonia, the outdoor gear company, is famous for their Ironclad Guarantee: if a piece of their equipment doesn't perform the way you expect, return it for repair or a full refund. I share this article because if no detail is too small for a piece of clothing you might own for 5-10 years, no detail should be too small when thinking about the design of an aquatic facility you will operate for 30-40 years. Why do we tolerate designers & architects who belittle aquatic staff who expect better quality design choices?
Episode 59: What You Need to Know When Taking on Commercial Pools with Katie Crysdale of Lakeview Aquatic Consultants LTD
Facebook recently reminded me that it's been five years since our two episodes with Pool Chasers (see also Episode 76) were released.
Therme Group snaps up Europe’s largest thermal bathing complex, secures €320m in financing
The group currently famous for ongoing drama surrounding the mega spa project at Ontario Place (Toronto) recently purchased a large spa in Germany. They already operate a massive spa in Bucharest, Romania.
Prince Albert's indoor pool is closing
The City of Prince Albert, SK has been building a beautiful new recreation facility, including aquatic facilities, scheduled to open in early 2025. The plan was always to close the Frank J. Dunn Pool, located at a high school, since it has reached the end of its lifecycle - the community also has a beautiful outdoor water park - but the community suddenly wants to keep both open?! Apparently communication is needed now more than ever when it comes to new pools replacing older pools.
Winnipeg draft budget sets aside millions for new St. Boniface outdoor pool
Winnipeg is getting serious about building a massive new outdoor aquatic facility to compensate for all of the smaller community pools that have reached the end of their lifecycle by setting aside $2.6m for preliminary design work in 2025.
'People love sludgy pools,' says TikTok winner
A pool technician, Miles Laflin, better known as Thep00lguy won TikToker of the year in the UK last week. He's not an influencer or a content creator, he's an honest-to-goodness real swimming pool service technician who vacuums & green-to-cleans filthy pools. It's very satisfying in a gimmicky social media world.
Wisconsin kayaker who faked his death and fled the country is charged after returning to US
The kayaker who faked his death and wasted tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars and hundreds of hours of rescuers' time - including the non-profit Bruce's Legacy - searching for his body, has returned to the USA from Georgia (the country) to face charges.
Diver rescued after 3 hours adrift at sea
This article includes an excellent video showing the map quadrants rescue teams used to triangulate the search for the missing diver.
We'll be skipping the next two weeks of newsletters (Friday, December 27 & Friday, January 3) and returning to you on Friday, January 10, 2025 so you don't have to summarily delete unnecessary emails when you get back to the office.
If you celebrate Christmas or Channukah or just need a few consecutive days off, I wish you light & love during what can be a very challenging part of the year for many people.
I know I learned a lot in 2024, so I'm excited to start out with a clean slate and not make the same mistakes again in 2025! I hope you'll join me.
Katie Crysdale
Lakeview Aquatic Consultants Ltd.
ICYMI - last week I talked about the importance of weight & height restrictions on water features. This is particularly ironic given the DIY water slides I saw in Honduras and Mexico this week! It's also not too late to share what you're eliminating from your work and home life - I'll cover this more in early 2025.