The Ontario Recreation Facilities Association (ORFA) is warning that without more investment in recreation infrastructure, more facilities will close, and many community hubs will be lost.

Summer 2025 was one of the hottest on record, yet several municipalities are being forced to close outdoor pools due to looming repair and replacement costs.

Central Huron, a community of approximately 8,000 residents located in southwestern Ontario, is removing its outdoor pool due to the estimated $5 million cost of repairing the 50-year-old structure.

The City of Elliot Lake, a community of approximately 12,000 residents located west of Sudbury, closed its 55-year-old arena in 2023 due to structural concerns.

ORFA hosted the Aging Recreation Infrastructure Symposium from October 6 to 8 at the Pan Am Centre in Markham, Ont., to raise awareness of the urgent need to preserve and save recreation facilities. The Symposium featured more than 30 education sessions covering a range of topics, including the recreation infrastructure lifecycle, asset management, funding opportunities, building for climate change and accessibility, and several case studies highlighting real-life experience with aging recreation facilities.