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McKenney: Fixing lifeguard shortage, opening all libraries on Sundays are part of building a healthy city

Mayoralty candidate Catherine McKenney revealed their healthy city plan on Tuesday.
Mayoralty candidate Catherine McKenney revealed their healthy city plan on Tuesday. Photo by Errol McGihon /Postmedia

Mayoral candidate Catherine McKenney would keep beaches and pools open longer and tackle a chronic shortage of lifeguards if elected.

The lifeguard shortage has plagued municipalities across North America, including Ottawa, which cancelled some classes and reduced the time of others this summer to deal with the shortage. It’s also not unusual for the city’s pools and beaches to be closed before the end of school summer vacation. This year, beaches at Mooney’s Bay, Britannia and Petrie Island were open for supervised swimming from June 18 to Aug. 28.

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“On a hot summer day, everyone should be able to cool off in our pools and beaches. But we need to make changes to get this done,” said McKenney, who intends to widen the lifeguard hiring pool by supporting youth from lower income families to get the necessary credentials.

Early this summer, the city said hiring projections for this summer had been on track. But in the last weeks of June, a significant number of lifeguards resigned — many to pursue work in other fields, according to a memo from the city. The shortage has continued into the fall. Last week, the city said 11 per cent of registered aquatics classes were being cancelled.

McKenney, who uses they/them pronouns, said the first part of the plan is paying lifeguards a wage that will attract and retain them. The second is helping youth from lower income families learn about the opportunities and get the credentials.

The city already has programs for kids taking swimming lessons, sometimes for free. The next step is to help youth get through the final steps to be certified as a lifeguard, said McKenney. “That’s where the barrier is for kids from lower income families.”

Meanwhile, McKenney said they would ensure that the city audits access to municipal services in French, including recreation services. The registration numbers for recreation programs in French don’t tell the full story of the need for those services, they said.

“Francophone children should always be able to go to swimming lessons in French. But what happens now is sometimes those French lessons fill up too quickly. And, understandably, parents send their kids to recreation services in English instead.”

McKenney would also open all libraries on Sundays. People learn, gather and access the internet for free in libraries, but only a third of Ottawa Public Library branches are open on Sundays, they said.

“We know that there is a need for expanded hours. We know that libraries are a place for people to learn and grow as a community hub.”

McKenney did not provide costing for the promises made on Tuesday. Costing details are to be released on Thursday.

However, McKenney said they would spend an additional $500,000 a year to support emerging and evolving community and social service needs, ranging from food security to mental crisis support.