Vancouver Park Board looks to clarify appropriate swimwear

The Vancouver Park Board is expected to look at a motion that will ultimately decide what is and is not considered appropriate swimwear in its facilities.

The board says aquatic services staff have raised concerns about swim attire and wish to have a policy to help manage situations.

According to a report to the Vancouver Park Board, some people have showed up wearing “attire that has had cause for attention, due to various levels of tolerance by both staff and members of the public as to what is acceptable attire for swimming in public aquatic facilities.”

There have also been concerns around safety risks posed by certain attire, with some clothing affecting a person’s ability to swim. This, in turn, puts lifeguards at risk, the report notes.

“The Attire for Swimming in Public Aquatic Facilities policy has been prepared to enable staff to have a mechanism that they can refer to when managing Park Board pool operations and assist in educating patrons in the event that inappropriate attire needs to be addressed,” the document reads.

The proposed policy lists appropriate attire as “attire designed for swimming,” including:

• bathing suits
• swim trunks, board shorts
• t-shirts, shorts
• burkini
• swim hijab, leggings and tunic
• rash guard
• wet suit

It notes what is considered “appropriate” is “defined as what other Canadians find as an acceptable level of tolerance in a family public swimming environment that includes maintaining full and appropriate coverage of genitals.”

The policy says attire that is considered “unacceptable” includes:

• Items designed for sexual/intimate purposes
• Clothing which absorbs water and becomes heavy such as jeans or sweatpants
• Attire with long/flowing fabric that may limit movement or cause a safety risk

The policy notes that in enforcing the rules, a staff member “must conduct themselves with decorum and with proper attention to the city’s diversity,” treating the public respectfully “at all times.”