--- title: "Vancouver Aquatic Centre demolition to proceed after court order expires" description: "The BC Court of Appeal's interim order halting work at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre expired November 3. The Park Board confirmed demolition will go ahead with a 25-metre pool plan. One commissioner said the board will seek a separate 50-metre pool in East Vancouver." canonical_url: "https://voche.me/news/vancouver-aquatic-centre-demolition-proceeds-november-2026" last_updated: "2026-11-05T10:08:11.545Z" --- ## A four-year dispute reaches a turning point The 50-metre competition pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre has served elite swimmers and recreation users since the facility opened in 1974 at 1050 Beach Avenue. For the past four years, its replacement has been the subject of plebiscites, court challenges and a civic election campaign promise. That dispute reached a turning point this week. The BC Court of Appeal order that had halted all demolition work at the facility expired at noon on November 3, 2026. A Vancouver Park Board spokesperson confirmed the same day that the 25-metre pool renewal plan will go ahead. "The renewal project will proceed with the 25-metre-pool design, reflecting previously approved direction by both the Vancouver Park Board and Vancouver City Council," the spokesperson told CBC News. Demolition of the existing building, including its 50-metre pool, is expected to begin later this month. The renovated facility is scheduled to open in late 2029. ## How the injunction came to expire The BC Court of Appeal granted the interim order on October 14, 2026, one day after a BC Supreme Court judge dismissed a legal challenge by the Protecting Our Vancouver Aquatic Centre Society (POVACS). Justice Dickson's order paused all demolition work: interior stripping, site preparation, exterior dismantling and the pool basins. The order expired November 3 at noon, one day after the newly elected Park Board held its inaugural meeting at VanDusen Botanical Gardens. The timing gave the new board one evening to consider the matter before the order lapsed. POVACS asked the commissioners to pass an emergency motion at the November 2 meeting to extend the pause. The board, sworn in that evening with four seats held by COPE and three by the Green Party of Vancouver, did not pass any motion before the November 3 deadline, CBC News reported. The court order expired, and the Park Board confirmed demolition would go ahead under the existing approved plan. POVACS's underlying court challenge remains pending at the BC Court of Appeal. The society has argued that senior City staff withheld engineering and environmental reports that bear on the pool size decision, and that the Park Board's approval of the 25-metre plan was based on incomplete information. ## The pool size dispute in brief The Vancouver Aquatic Centre permanently closed in June 2026. The $175-million renewal project approved by the Park Board and City Council calls for a new facility with a 25-metre, eight-lane lap pool, along with a leisure pool, diving pool, hot tub and fitness gym, Daily Hive reported. Park Board staff concluded that a 50-metre pool could not fit within the site at the same standard as a purpose-built competition facility while also meeting all program requirements approved for the renewal. Swim clubs and competitive swimming groups pushed back, saying the loss of a 50-metre pool would prevent elite and competitive training in the city. A $3.5-million demolition contract was awarded to Heatherbrae Builders in July 2026 to carry out the initial work, Daily Hive reported. POVACS has argued that the City's plan conflicts with a 2022 plebiscite in which Vancouver voters approved $103 million in borrowing for aquatic centre replacement. The society's position is that voter support was conditional on a 50-metre pool being included in the new facility. ## What the new board has said [Tom Digby](/candidates/tom-digby), a Green Party commissioner who was re-elected in October, told CBC News the board intends to pursue a separate 50-metre pool at either Hastings or Kensington community centres in East Vancouver, while proceeding with the 25-metre pool design for the aquatic centre site. He gave no cost figure or timeline for a second pool. The other six commissioners are [Breanne Smart](/candidates/breanne-smart), [Spencer Van Vloten](/candidates/spencer-van-vloten) (both Green Party), and [T'uy't'tanat Cease Wyss](/candidates/t-uy-t-tanat-cease-wyss), [Tamiko Suzuki](/candidates/tamiko-suzuki), [Jamie Han](/candidates/jamie-han) and [Sacia Burton](/candidates/sacia-burton) (all COPE). None made separate statements about the aquatic centre after taking office on November 2. The Park Board's first regular working meeting of the new term is scheduled for November 30, 2026. ## What the society says POVACS director Jon Girard and former Park Board candidate Mayeli Alvarez both ran for Park Board seats in the October election and were not elected. Their court challenge at the BC Court of Appeal has not yet been scheduled for a hearing, CBC News reported. The society has also said the site holds more than 60 trees it wants preserved during construction, and that proceeding with the current plan would add costs beyond what it says a redesigned 50-metre facility would cost. Those figures have not been independently verified. ## What happens next Heatherbrae Builders is expected to resume demolition work later this month. Major construction is planned to start in late 2026 or early 2027, with the new facility opening targeted for 2029. Residents who want to follow the Park Board's decisions on the aquatic centre can attend board meetings, which are open to the public. The first regular meeting of the new term is on November 30 at 7 pm. The agenda and meeting location will be posted at [parkboardmeetings.vancouver.ca](https://parkboardmeetings.vancouver.ca/2026/index.htm) before the meeting. ## Sitemap See the full [sitemap](/sitemap.md) for all pages.