What is okay to wear at Vancouver pools? Park board to vote on policy

What do you think is appropriate to wear at the pool? Well, the Vancouver Park Board is set to vote on a policy outlining what swimwear is acceptable for public pools on Monday.

Read more: Vancouver Park Board looks to clarify appropriate swimwear

But one frequent swimmer at Kitsilano Pool says they don’t agree with the Park Board having a say on how people dress their bodies.

“It’s going to definitely target folks who have differing gender identities because the way that I sort of read a guideline like this is policing the bodies that we don’t want to be seen in public, even though it doesn’t necessarily say that explicitly,” Lydia Okello said.

Okello says enforcement of the rules could put staff and swimmers in a tricky situation.

“Let’s say, it’s a trans person and you are like, ‘I don’t think that this person should be wearing a bikini.’ Is that something that the staff has the jurisdiction to decide? I don’t really know,” they added.

A person swimming in a Vancouver pool. (Sarah Chew, CityNews Image)

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

“Some people show up at our swimming pools wearing hoodies and jeans or flowy gowns, which are actually a safety risk, and that puts the lifeguards in a problem…[There is the] occasional report of one person who likes to wear a sock, and not on his foot,” Park Board Commissioner Tom Digby with the Green Party of Vancouver said.

The proposed policy lists appropriate attire as “attire designed for swimming,” including bathing suits, swim trunks, and swim hijabs, whereas “unacceptable” items include things like sexual or intimate items and clothing that absorbs water.

But Digby says he isn’t worried.

“Our staff is so used to dealing with the city, this big, wonderful city, and all the diverse body types that I’m sure the risk of [a] mistake being made is very small,” he said.

He says the board’s concern is people who avoid pools because of too much exposure.

“A lot of our communities here in Vancouver, over 55 per cent, come from fairly conservative backgrounds or back histories in countries that are not Eurocentric,” he said.

The board is voting on the policy Monday evening – and if passed, it would apply to the city’s nine indoor, and five outdoor, pools once the season starts.

With files from Hana Mae Nassar