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The lawyer representing the region’s largest school board says he’s confident one high school’s student swimmers who’ve been without a pool to train in will be back in the swim of things soon.
Parents at Aylmer’s East Elgin secondary school have expressed concern that an insurance dispute between the province and the Thames Valley District school board has interfered with the school swim team’s training and may derail its season, set to start Tuesday.
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The team has used the pool at the Ontario Police College in Aylmer for 40 years. But insurance concerns and red tape has put that in jeopardy, according to Cam Charlton, the parent of an East Elgin swimmer. He says it’s a stalemate between the school board and the solicitor general, which oversees the police training facility.
Monday, school board lawyer Ali Chahbar said he’s “cautiously optimistic” there will be no interruptions to the school team’s competitive season. And, he said, the swim team will compete “with the peace of mind that the proper legal and insurance coverage is in place.”
Added Chahbar: “The parties have been working towards arriving at mutually agreeable language that will permit the use of the facility for the upcoming swim season and the liability concerns of the parties including students.”
But parents of the students expressed disappointment Monday that “it took five months and considerable public pressure” before they got a sense of a breakthrough.
“While it’s promising that the parties are working on mutually agreeable language, it’s important to note that this does not mean the agreement has been finalized or signed – nor is there a definite timeline for when it will be,” Charlton and Heidi Weninger said in a joint statement.
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The athletics organization for the board has set a Nov. 15 deadline for the dispute to be settled or else the East Elgin team will be forced to forfeit the season.
“The kids are caught in the middle, unable to train and prepare for their competitions,” the joint statement read. “We’re hopeful that all parties will move quickly to allow the team back in the pool, so our students can get back to doing what they love and focus on their upcoming season.
“That said, the frustration and stress caused by this lengthy process won’t be forgotten, but I’m truly grateful for any progress that allows our kids to return to the water.”
The 23-student team has no other nearby options for indoor pools, Charlton said. The indoor pool in Tillsonburg is closed for renovations and the Ingersoll pool is unavailable, he said.
The Ontario Police College’s indoor pool has been the home of the East Elgin swim team for the past 40 year, Weninger said, adding this is the first time there’s been an insurance problem.
@HeatheratLFP
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