The City of Montreal will upgrade the fences around about 50 outdoor aquatic facilities to the tune of $1.3 million in order to bring them up to code.
Hadrien Parizeau, a city councillor and adviser to the executive committee in youth, sports and recreation, said it comes down to a matter of safety.
“Most fences were installed a long time ago at a time when safety standards were less stringent,” said Parizeau in a statement.
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The city announced on Wednesday it awarded two contracts to overhaul the structures after it looked into the fences surrounding of a total of 300 pools, wading pools and water game parks on the island.
As part of the project, workers will repair the fences based on current condition. They also will dismantle the chain links and put in new chain links no wider than 38 millimetres in diameter in line with safety regulations.
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The work will begin this winter and during the spring.
“We are working quickly to ensure that the work will be done for the most part before the start of the summer season to avoid affecting swimming as much as possible,” said Parizeau.
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The move is the latest step in bolstering pool safety across the city.
In June 2018, the city also raised the minimum age for children to swim in public pools unaccompanied by a guardian to eight years old.