An Indoor Swim Spot With an Outdoorsy Feel

The former fishing village of skʷəkʷtɛ’xʷqən, now known as the city of New Westminster, B.C., was historically a lush, wooded gathering place for the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓-speaking peoples. Then, over time, officials slowly backfilled the area’s vast ravine to accommodate development. By 2021, however, the city was keen to pull a reverse–Joni Mitchell, unpaving one specific parking lot at the request of 3,000 community members. They had a few ideas for how to fill the space: a replacement for the nearby (decaying) Canada Games pool, along with recreational facilities for local kids and celebrations (like powwows) and a recreation of the original green space.

Over the next three years, construction workers and architects from HCMA Architecture and Design excavated the ravine, encountering buried car parts and such poor-quality soil that a structural engineer had to tweak the initial foundation designs to stop the structure sinking into the ground. Last April, the final product was unveiled: təməsew̓txʷ (pronounced Thomas-out) Aquatic and Community Centre, a 115,000-square-foot facility home to an Olympic-sized lap pool, a lazy river, a leisure pool, fitness rooms, childcare facilities and a soaring, 30-foot lobby that doubles as an admission-free hangout space for visitors. With a price tag of $107 million, it’s the city’s most expensive capital project to date.

təməsew̓txʷ is also the first aquatic centre in the country to earn a zero-carbon design designation. Unlike other public pools, which can be notorious greenhouse-gas emitters and typically rely on gas boilers to heat water, təməsew̓txʷ runs partially on solar panels. Above the lap pool, a wooden, zig-zagging sawtooth roof lets in plenty of indirect daylight, preventing a glare from bouncing off the water. In fact, the entire facility is extremely wood-heavy, from its hulking cross-laminated timber ceiling (which can tolerate lots of humidity and unintentionally resembles a gym floor) to its central spiralling, maple-wrapped staircase.

Since its spring opening, the space has been abuzz with activity: teens playing pickup basketball, kids learning to dog-paddle and synchronized swim teams practising their moves. The centre has also received the blessing of local Indigenous groups. Its name, təməsew̓txʷ, means “sea otter house” in the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language, a nod to animals well known for their tight-knit bonds and love of play.