City of Toronto to open 10 outdoor pools today

The remaining outdoor City pools will open on Saturday, June 24

TORONTO, June 17, 2023 – With the arrival of warmer weather, the City of Toronto will open 10 outdoor pools today, Saturday, June 17, to help residents beat the heat and enjoy a refreshing swim.

The City says the continued opening of 10 of the City’s outdoor pools earlier in June demonstrates its dedication to the wellbeing and happiness of residents. The City says it aims to promote physical wellbeing and encourage an active lifestyle, while providing a safe and enjoyable recreational experience for individuals and families throughout Toronto.

“The first 10 outdoor pools opening this weekend is a sure sign of summer in the city, I want to thank our hardworking City staff for opening these 10 pools as early as possible and I wish everyone enjoying our outdoor pools in the weeks and months ahead a happy and fun summer,” said Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie (Scarborough-Rouge Park), Chair of the Infrastructure and Environment Committee.

What City of Toronto pools will be open as of today

The 10 outdoor pools will run on a partial schedule (Monday to Friday, 4 to 8 p.m. and weekends, noon to 8 p.m.):

• Alex Duff Memorial Pool – 779 Crawford St.
• Kiwanis Outdoor Pool – 375 Cedarvale Ave.
• Heron Park Community Centre – 292 Manse Rd.
• Grandravine Community Centre – 23 Grandravine Dr.
• McGregor Community Centre – 2231 Lawrence Ave. E.
• Monarch Park Outdoor Pool – 115 Felstead Ave.
• Parkway Forest Community Centre – 59 Forest Manor Rd.
• Sunnyside – Gus Ryder Outdoor Pool – 1755 Lake Shore Blvd. W.
• West Mall Outdoor Pool – 370 The West Mall
• West Grove Park Outdoor Pool – 15 Redgrave Dr.

The remaining outdoor City pools will open on Saturday, June 24, also on a partial schedule. Full schedules will begin at all locations on Friday, June 30. The City’s 90 supervised wading pools will also open on June 30.

Residents can check each location for hours of operation on the City’s Swim & Water Play webpage.

People visiting the City’s outdoor pools are reminded that:

• Supervision and/or swimming ability requirements are in place for children under 10 years of age at all City outdoor pools
• Outdoor leisure swimming is free for all ages and reservations are not required
• Outdoor lane swim is free and open to swimmers seven years old and older for swimming continuous lengths or widths
• Caregivers should supervise children at all times
• Pool visitors must listen to the on-duty lifeguards

Reservations are available for Aquafit only. New reservation spots are released Thursday mornings at 8 a.m. for the following Monday to Sunday.

Pool closures and service interruptions are updated routinely on the City’s Pool Closures & Service Alerts webpage. Pool locations operating normally are not on this list.

Lifeguard supervision at nine City beaches is available seven days a week, 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Full lifeguard supervision of the City’s 10 beaches will begin on July 1. Please continue to only swim in designated areas.

Throughout 2022 and 2023, the City worked to recruit new staff and certify existing staff with additional aquatic certifications. While other jurisdictions continue to face lifeguard shortages, the City currently has staffing to supervise all City outdoor pools.

TransformTO Net Zero Strategy
As greenhouse gas emissions globally continue to warm our climate, Toronto is expected to experience more hot days and longer heat events. Opening outdoor pools in mid-June is part of the City’s hot weather response plan to ensure residents – especially those who are vulnerable to the heat – have access to cool spaces. During heat alert days, hours are temporarily extended hours at outdoor pools.

Every summer, the City activates the Heat Relief Network, which is made up of more than 550 publicly accessible cool spaces throughout the city, including libraries, community centres, outdoor pools, wading pools/splash pads and civic centres, as well as some private and non-profit facilities like shopping malls, senior centres and YMCA locations. All available locations can be found by visiting the City’s Cool Spaces Near You webpage: www.toronto.ca/CoolSpaces.

The City’s TransformTO Net Zero Strategy set an ambitious target to reduce Toronto’s community-wide greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2040. More information about the climate emergency, City programs, grants and incentives and what residents can do to is available on the City’s website.

SOURCE City of Toronto

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