Summer Play Programs (Paddling Pools & Spray Pads)

As part of the City’s Water Conservation Strategy, the City is implementing actions to reduce water usage and costs related to the operation of spray pads. In year two of the spray pad water conservation project, three spray pads will be updated with a combination of misters and lower-flow nozzles, which will save water without compromising the spray pad experience. The three spray pads that will be updated are in Briarwood, Stonebridge, and River Heights. These upgrades are expected to reduce water use by 20-60% while maintaining 100% of the fun. Water conservation work at the spray pads began in 2023 and helped save 6.4 million litres of water – the same amount of water used by 33 households in a year. Trials from the 2023 pilot are now being incorporated to test newer nozzle combinations in 2024.

Hey Kids!  Learn more about water conservation in the Be Water Wise activity book.

To reduce the amount of chemical going into the storm water drain system, The City of Saskatoon is required by Saskatchewan Environmental Protection to dechlorinate the Confederation Park Paddling Pool.  This process is unique to Confederation Park because it is connected to a storm line as opposed to a sanitary sewer line like the other paddling pools in the city. 

This process involves adding a neutralizing agent to the chlorine. After this chemical is added, it is no longer safe to enter the water under our public health operating license. Therefore, the water is drained, and the pool and park area inside the fence will be closed.

The dechlorination process takes 30 minutes and it takes an additional 30 minutes to drain the pool.  Dryland programming will continue in the rec unit and adjacent park for the remainder of the day.   The dryland-only schedule is as follows:

Confederation Park Dryland-Only Programming

• Monday-Thursday: 5:00pm-6:00pm
• Friday: 3:30pm-4:30pm
• Saturday/Sunday/August 5 STAT: 4:00pm-5:00pm

There are plans to change the drains lines from storm to sanitary next summer.

Children under the age of 6 must be supervised by an adult or responsible youth (12 years or older) at all times during Play Program hours. To help preschool age children stay safe in and around the water, the City requires that all participants comply with the following policy:

"For every 2 preschoolers under the age of 6, there must be one adult or responsible youth (12 years or older) within arm's length, supervising the preschoolers' water play and activity."