Toulouse: with repeated heatwaves, do we need a new summer pool?
The lack of swimming pools in summer in Toulouse is pointed out by some users. The town hall does not plan to create a new aquatic center.
With the Nakache swimming pool and its pools, the Ramée beach since 2016, and its network of municipal swimming pools, not to mention the swimming pools in the agglomeration (Muret, Colomiers, Blagnac), are the people of Toulouse lacking in summer freshness? Some, like the association “60 million pedestrians”, asked in particular for the opening of the Léo Lagrange swimming pool in the summer of 2020, or the extension of hours during a heat wave. “A swimming pool in the city center, where it is the hottest, is essential”, explained the spokesperson for the association.
“There was Aqualand in Sesquières, and it didn’t work”
On the occasion of a progress report on the city’s “Swimming pool plan” on October 7, the mayor of Toulouse reaffirmed his choice to “put the package” on the renovation of existing swimming pools. “In a constrained budgetary context, we are investing 30 million euros until 2026,” recalls Jean-Luc Moudenc. Often saturated. Should we create a new aqualudic center in Toulouse? “There was an Aqualand in Sesquières a few years ago, and it did not work, advance Laurence Arribagé, sports assistant. I’m not sure it would work. The people of Toulouse go to Colomiers and Aqualudia, just like the inhabitants of these towns today come to Toulouse for other activities, make no mistake about it. ”
More general public slots at the Castex pool?
In the absence of new equipment, can we extend the hours, or leave swimming pools open in summer? “Here at the Alban-Minville swimming pool for example, summer is untenable”, remarks a technician from the town hall. Can the Castex basin, reserved for the Dauphins du Toec, be more open to the general public? “The resident club of this swimming pool is one of the elite clubs of Toulouse. It contributes to the national and international influence of the city. The club needs a dedicated infrastructure, otherwise it wouldn’t work. We accept the fact that access to the general public is restricted, as successive municipalities have done for many years “, replies Jean-Luc Moudenc.