When members of Windsor city council meet online Monday afternoon to discuss the future of the Adie Knox Herman Recreation Complex, they can expect tough opposition.
Mayor Drew Dilkens recently announced a tentative $42-million plan to reconstruct the west-end recreation centre and open a pool at the new Lancer Centre on the campus of the University of Windsor to the public. However, there is a catch. The pool at Adie Knox would close.
Related story: Pool at Adie Knox could close after City and University of Windsor reach new agreement
"There are a lot of groups that probably wouldn't easily assimilate into a university environment," said Linda MacKenzie naming off seniors, those with mobility issues, and young children as a few of those groups. "I just can't see those three groups wanting to go to the university pool and mingling with university students."
The City of Windsor launched a recent survey online to find out what amenities the public would like at the Adie Knox complex, but MacKenzie, who is a member of "The Friends of Adie Knox," told BlackburnNews.com many of those most impacted either did hear about the survey or do not have access to it.
It was not the first survey conducted on the issue. A similar one was carried out at Devonshire Mall and online a few years ago when the city was formulating its master plan for the community centre.
She believes if the city had gone out to Adie Knox, it would have found out what the community really thinks about the plan.
"Adie Knox pool has the highest usage in the city. What does that tell you?" she asked. "I think if they had really, really reached out to the people, the general public and especially those in the west end, they would have come back with very different feedback."
A petition started before the pandemic gathered over 4,000 signatures, and MacKenzie said she has received hundreds more.
MacKenzie believes the writing has been on the wall for the pool at Adie Knox for years, and the latest agreement was never predicated on public will.
"Once they decided several years ago, that the mayor [Mayor Eddie Francis at that time] wanted to close Adie Knox and recoup those operating costs to put into the money-pit WIATC [Windsor International Aquatic and Training Centre], that they just ignored Adie Knox," she said.
The city has said fixing the pool up to the expected standard would cost too much money, but she pins the blame for that back on city officials.
"My question to that is, why is Adie Knox in this state of disrepair?" she said. "That's their fault. They shouldn't have ignored it."