North Vancouver rec centre closure has some feeling ‘overlooked, undermined’

A recreation centre in North Vancouver will be shuttered while a replacement is built, leaving many who rely on the facility for exercise, connection, and community wondering if the city has truly considered the impact.

The Harry Jerome Community Recreation Centre was built in 1966, and council voted on a plan that will have it close at the end of 2021. The new centre won’t be complete until 2025.

While the mayor says the plan to provide interim access to programs and services won’t leave anyone behind, people like Vivan Cheng, who swims at the centre and started a petition asking for it to stay open during construction, aren’t convinced.

Cheng says she doesn’t think the people who will be affected by the closure were properly consulted, saying a lot of them don’t even know the closure is imminent.

“I was surprised. My first reaction was, ‘What about all the seniors that come here, where are they going to go?’ It’s such a beautiful community that they have. They exercise together, they chat in the change room, and they go out for coffee together. It’s the human connection that would really be lost, and the opportunity to stay healthy,” she tells CityNews.

“We’ve been overlooked and undermined, respectfully.”
On @CityNewsVAN I’m speaking to different user groups impacted by the upcoming closure of the Harry Jerome Rec Centre in #NorthVan. Here’s what North Shore Indians Lacrosse Club President Wilson Williams had to say. pic.twitter.com/FLCVSoXCkq

— Ria Ren-‘BOO!’-(@riarenouf) October 19, 2021

City of North Vancouver Mayor Linda Buchanan says she understands people will be inconvenienced, but that the project has been in the planning phases for far too long.

“Certainly, I understand the concerns that some residents have had about the closure of this centre. Council obviously takes health and well-being very, very seriously. This is a value we share. We know it’s going to be disruptive, but from our perspective, we’re moving from a conversation which has been for 22 years and moving to action. ” she says.

“We’re ensuring that the recreational needs of people are going to be met while we’re building this new facility. I should add that staff has really given careful consideration — particularly how to support people that are more vulnerable in the interim.”

As for the city’s response, I had a chance to sit down w/@LindaCBuchanan, who says every effort will be made to accommodate those who end up displaced b/c of the #northvan Harry Jerome closure.

More to come on radio, TV & web on @CityNewsVAN pic.twitter.com/lM9PAruaBg

— Ria Ren-‘BOO!’-f (@riarenouf) October 20, 2021

Cheng says she doesn’t have faith that programs or services at other sites will be accessible.

“The convenience, I think, it’s a big thing for seniors for families without cars. Those are all issues that need to be taken into consideration,” she says, adding she started her petition to give people like this a voice.

“We are trying to tell the city, ‘This is what you initially promised, you said you were going to keep it open — please keep your promise.’ People need this place, especially now.”

I also spoke to Vivian Cheng who started the petition; she lives near the Harry Jerome Rec Centre in #NorthVan. Cheng’s first thought was about the seniors who swim and exercise there. With the current centre closing, she is worried about their future and sense of community. pic.twitter.com/jFuEm46ntc

— Ria Ren-‘BOO!’-f (@riarenouf) October 20, 2021

Buchanan says arrangements will be made for transportation for people for whom getting to another centre would be a challenge and encourages anyone with concerns to contact the city to get more information about the interim plan.

“We want to make sure that people have access to the information that they need and support. For example, if a senior needed support to get to a facility. Is there an opportunity for us to be able to shuttle people to where they need to be? Or support them to get HandyDART?” she says.

“The interim plan will focus on those who have more vulnerabilities, and those with disabilities.”

‘Overlooked and undermined’

While Cheng says her petition is meant to give a voice to individual users, news that the closure is going ahead is disappointing to groups that rely on the centre.

Wilson Williams, who is an elected councillor for the Squamish Nation, leads one of them — the North Shore Indians Lacrosse Club which has been playing at the facility for decades.

“We’ve been using Harry Jerome since 1967. My great grandfather was coaching at that time, and my grandfather was playing at that time. It just really feels like we’ve been overlooked and undermined — respectfully.”

According to Williams, the suggestions given by the city for alternative places to play, including the offer of outdoor space, haven’t been adequate.

“We don’t play outside. What’s being overlooked is, we always had 500 fans come out and that’s sometimes more than a professional lacrosse game, and there’s the banging of the drums. It’s a bigger broader, community but it holds really strong with our families in the Squamish Nation.”

Finding a new place to play isn’t easy, especially since some places are saying they don’t want to book new groups due to the pandemic.

“We haven’t had any success. We’ve contacted probably five or six arenas, community centres, recreation centres,” he says.

“It’s very hard for us at this time because anxiety keeps building.”

His overarching concern is a lack of meaningful consultation, and a lack of proactive communication from the city.

“Reach out to somebody and speak to them personally and work out the things that need to be. See if there’s displacement,” he says.

“If we don’t have influence here, we need to really look at these processes, at why the decisions were made without the proper communication and consultation. Living in First Nations country, we’re affected by that still. When you look at reconciliation, the duty to consult is there. We need to make sure to enhance these processes and programmes to make sure the inclusivity is there, a hundred per cent.”

The rec centre is closing, in large part for financial reasons, so the city can lease the land to a developer to help pay for construction.

But Cheng is appealing to the city to consider the cost to the community.

“If you can’t find the money to do it, somebody else will end up paying for it somewhere down the line. It could be a senior who can’t access other facilities and their health can decline really rapidly. So, the health care system will pay for it or their family members will have to take time off of work, or they’ll have to pay for more medication. Families who can’t access it, it could affect their emotional health,” she says.

“Somebody will pay for it somehow, it just might not be the city.”

The people and groups who want the current centre to stay open are planning a rally for Oct. 30.