In the wake of the release of a review of Greater Sudbury’s aquatic facilities, Laurentian University will be seeking vendors interested in taking part in potential repairs to its long-closed Jeno Tihanyi Pool.
The university made the announcement in an internal email issued Oct. 15.
“In the past few weeks, we have been working on the next steps necessary towards a reopening of the pool,” said the email.
“Laurentian University will be issuing a Request For Expression of Interest (RFEI) to seek vendors interested in any part of the potential repairs to the Jeno Tihanyi Pool and supporting complex.
“This includes repairs to the pool structure, as well as the work needed to ensure the facility is accessible to meet the needs of our students, faculty, staff, and the Greater Sudbury community.”
The email said the RFEI aims to gain an understanding of the availability of third parties and their capability/capacity.
“We seek to better position the university to find the external partners needed to fund a project of this size and complexity,” said the email from Laurentian. “We feel as though this RFEI will also inform further discussions with the City of Greater Sudbury.”
A review of local aquatics facilities by the City of Greater Sudbury, which was presented to city council Oct. 8, put forward the case for collaboration between the city and Laurentian University when it comes to getting the 50-metre pool, which has been closed since 2020, back into operation.
The city should consider establishing “service agreements” with Laurentian and the YMCA, another non-municipal pool operator, according to one of the strategic directions in the report, which labels this as a high priority.
The report also said that Greater Sudbury should “encourage Laurentian University to begin planning for the major revitalization or replacement of the Jeno Tihanyi Pool within the 25-year horizon of this plan.”
This strategic direction is also labelled as “high” in the report, which notes the Jeno Tihanyi Pool, when operational, is the only 50-metre pool in the Near North region of Ontario, serving a population of more than 2.2 million people.
The university, which is still recovering from its 2021-2022 insolvency, has said it doesn’t have the money to repair and operate the pool.
City councillors passed a motion Oct. 8 directing staff to “work with Laurentian University on the development of a business plan for the re-opening of the Jeno Tihanyi Pool which explores potential operating models and capital and operating cost-sharing options.”
City staff were to provide an update to the Community & Emergency Services Committee by June 2025.
“The Jeno Tihanyi Pool continues to be an important topic of discussion for our senior leaders at Laurentian University,” said the Oct. 15 written update from Laurentian.
“We appreciate that the City of Greater Sudbury included the Jeno Tihanyi Pool in the recent Aquatic Service and Facility Review, which was presented and discussed at their city council meeting on Oct. 8, 2024.
“We welcome the results of the report, as well as the associated resolutions from city council and will look forward to continued discussions on the future of the facility. We maintain the understanding that we do not expect the city to fund the repairs of the facility.”
The university said it will continue to provide the community with updates on the Jeno Tihanyi Pool.
Heidi Ulrichsen is Sudbury.com’s assistant editor. She also covers education and the arts scene.
