Hello Friends of Mount Pleasant Park!
Thank you so much for taking a stand and opposing the proposed outdoor pool. In its first few days, over 200 like-minded people signed the petition. Clearly you share our love of this gathering space!
We’ve been told by Park Board staff that it is critical for City Councillors and Park Board Commissioners to hear directly from you. While the petition gives them a better idea of the number of people opposed, direct contact via email and/or phone will make all the difference.
So could you please take a few minutes today to email the City Councillors and Park Board Commissioners to let them know why you are opposed to the pool and what Mount Pleasant Park means to you? If you need some inspiration, here are some of the many reasons you signed the petition:
“Mount Pleasant Park is a vibrant, beautiful and vital neighbourhood community space that I spend many a sunny day enjoying.”
"20 million dollars could be better put towards updating the permanently closed down Kensington pool. Keep the pleasant in Mount Pleasant"
"All that expense for a limited use window seems like a waste of tax payer funds"
"The field is used by many people and we need the green open space. There are plenty of bigger parks close by where a pool would make sense."
If you need ideas, we’ve compiled unbiased information on the Change website where you signed the petition, information that we think demonstrates why this proposed outdoor “100 day pool” is such a bad idea in Mount Pleasant Park. We've also included sample email text and the email addresses for the City Councillors and Park Board Commissioners. And below we’ve also pasted the letter we sent to these same decision-makers yesterday, in case you want to amplify any of these thoughts.
With your letters, we’re confident we can nudge the decision-makers to make a wise decision, withdraw this proposal from any further consideration, and say NO to an outdoor pool in Mount Pleasant Park. Remember though, City Councillors should be deciding the fate of Mount Pleasant Park at the beginning of June, so we only have three weeks to ensure they hear a resounding NO to the pool!
Warmly,
Joleen
*******************************************
Kennedy.Stewart@vancouver.ca; CLRbligh@vancouver.ca; CLRboyle@vancouver.ca; CLRcarr@vancouver.ca; CLRdegenova@vancouver.ca; CLRdominato@vancouver.ca; CLRfry@vancouver.ca; CLRhardwick@vancouver.ca; CLRkirby-yung@vancouver.ca; CLRswanson@vancouver.ca; CLRwiebe@vancouver.ca; Tricia.Barker@vancouver.ca; john.coupar@vancouver.ca; Dave.Demers@vancouver.ca; Camil.Dumont@vancouver.ca; Gwen.Giesbrecht@vancouver.ca; John.Irwin@vancouver.ca; stuart.mackinnon@vancouver.ca; PBcommissioners@vancouver.ca
Dear Mayor Stewart, City Councillors and Park Board Commissioners,
A decision made 15 years ago to rebuild the pool in Mount Pleasant Park is backward-looking, rooted in a past that no longer exists, and ignores the complexity of today’s urban environment and the needs of tomorrow’s residents. Mount Pleasant has changed drastically in the last 15-20 years, and will continue to densify as Vancouver’s population grows in the coming years.
As City Councillors and Park Board Commissioners, you have neglected your duty to inform Mount Pleasant residents about this community-altering proposal. Many many residents do not know or are vaguely aware of this dated proposal; 100% of people we spoke to at Mount Pleasant Park on Saturday, May 7 do not support this outdoor pool.
In under 36 hours since launching our online petition (https://www.change.org/p/save-mount-pleasant-park-stop-the-pool), over 120 hyper-local Friends of Mount Pleasant Park (eg, residents, park users, parents of Simon Fraser Elementary students) have signed this petition. We will continue to encourage every single one of them to get in touch with you over the coming weeks to express in their own words why protecting the park as a greenspace is so important to them, and why a location such as Hillcrest Outdoor Pool should be expanded.
As elected officials, you must strive to build trust in public institutions, yet considering this park proposal directly conflicts with your own initiatives, from Councillor Kirby-Yung’s motion to prioritize upgrade existing and ageing community facilities rather than building new ones, to aligning the capital plan with the climate emergency (the pool would remove ~30% of the park’s trees, to VanPlay’s Goal #2 to preserve greenspace in Mt.Pleasant (the pool would remove 30% of the park's greenspace)!
To you, we ask that you please make a wise decision, withdraw this proposal from any further consideration, and say NO to an outdoor pool in Mount Pleasant Park. Be on the right side of history! Don’t be remembered as those who, to paraphrase Joni Mitchell, paved paradise and put up a swimming pool.