Amid cries from the public about the lack of available youth swimming lesson timeslots, the city of Kingston has made a step to help lessen the strain.
The city has partnered with Queen’s University, which will offer up pool time at its Athletic Recreation Centre to cater to those wanting to sign up for swim lessons, in addition to time for open leisure swimming.
“We are pleased to work with our colleagues at Queen’s University to open up more spots in our swimming program this spring,” said Amy Gibson, manager of recreation services at the city of Kingston. “This is a creative solution to manage the demand we’re seeing for our programming and, while not everyone currently on a waiting list will get a spot, we are exploring all opportunities available to provide lessons to youth in Kingston.”
“We sincerely look forward to collaborating with Queen’s University on this partnership,” she added.
The city said spots for the additional lessons will be offered to individuals who placed their names on a waiting list for the spring swim session. City staff will contact people based on their position on the list.
“Queen’s Athletics and Recreation is dedicated to having a positive impact on our community, and we are excited to welcome swimming participants from across Kingston into the Athletics and Recreation Centre this spring,” says Linda Melnick, executive director of Queen’s athletics and recreation.
“I am grateful for the collaboration of our teams to find solutions that aid local needs in the near term, and I am excited to foster this partnership to address the recreational and skill development needs of our city in the future.”