The City of Toronto is facing a $91 million shortfall when it comes to the budget.
One of the recommendations being made by city staff to save money is the closure of dozens of pools.
Olympic gold medallist Penny Oleksiak tweeted about the importance of pools and Mayor John Tory was quick to respond saying he would ask Budget Chief Gary Crawford to find a way to keep them open.
Councillor Mike Layton is questioning if the city needs to realistically look at who this budget for. "Who is paying for this tax freeze? Who is doing that? It's transit riders, it's parents with kids in daycare, and it's kids going to rec programs. Is that fair?"
He would never discourage anyone from raising their voice and getting involved, but politicians need to make sure everyone is heard. "One of the questions you gotta ask is why is it one tweet can generate that kind of reaction? Again, I don't want to discourage people of any walk of life to speak out. This is good, this is a healthy democracy. But, where was the mayor responding to all those homeless activists and individuals that came out to our meetings?"
Roughly 230 people made deputations at a dozen public meetings on the budget.
Budget Chief Gary Crawford confirms he is asking staff for more information about recommendations to relocate city swim programs that are presently operating at three pools in the TDSB.
It's important to teach kids how to swim.. It saves lives and is a good physical activity #TOpoli #saveSHpool #ToBudget Good luck to Duke
— Penny Oleksiak (@OleksiakPenny) January 10, 2017
Gold medal message received, @OleksiakPenny. I've asked Budget Chief Gary Crawford to find a way to save these pools. https://t.co/A9N9HK2inH
— John Tory (@JohnTory) January 11, 2017