Small Cochrane developer Ken Blair has been left shaking his head as to why the town is so quick to demolish the Big Hill Pool instead of repurposing it to meet the needs of a long list of possible users.

Blair says the town should set aside its tender to demolish the building and instead gut its interior and repurpose it for some of the needs being identified during the current municipal election.

The request for tenders (ROP) for its demolition close on Oct. 16 and he was among those doing a prequalification walk through on Friday as to what the job entails. What he found was a gem of a building he says the town shouldn't destroy. He says groups like the seniors, boys and girls club and others could possibly share it's 13,000 sq. ft. He has since presented the idea to an architect and says she offered some great ideas for the building.

"They could all use a part of the repurposed multi-use building in the heart in town which is already owned for less money than it's going to cost, $600,000-$800,000, for demolition. It doesn't make comon sense to demolish it."

He believes the decision was made without any public consultation and questions the transparency on the issue. He believes the current council is simply wasting taxpayers' money by okaying its demolition.

"Why the rush? They could turn off the gas, turn off the electricity and water and have a public discussion, a forum, to listen to suggestions on what it could be used for."

He says some of the others doing the walk through were also shaking their head as to why the whole building should go.

In its tender package, it states the Town reserves the right to cancel a request for proposal in its entirety if all qualified bids exceed the Town’s allocated budgets or if the scope of the town’s requirements change.

In May, town council resisted the idea presented by town councillor Morgan Nagel to lease out the building rather than spend $740,000 for its demolition. At that time, town administration indicated the building was near the end of its lifecyle and explained the moist environment of a pool deteriorates the lifespan of such building. Mayor Ivan Brooker said the town had bigger and better plans for the land and wasn't keen on reusing an old building.