Refurbished springs strive for the natural look

It could be called Extreme Makeover - Hot Springs Edition.

It could be called Extreme Makeover - Hot Springs Edition.

The Takhini Hot Springs are sporting a very different look this year as the summer season approaches.

“We want to do something different with the place,“ shareholder Garry Umbrich said in an interview earlier this week.

Lumber, fencing and a slew of other supplies sit in front of the building that normally houses the change rooms, restaurant and offices that are now being torn up, fixed and painted.

The pool is empty, and the cement that surrounded it is gone to make way for wooden walkways that will give the facility a more natural feel, Umbrich explained at the site north of Whitehorse.

Umbrich is among the new owners fixing up the facility with extensive long-term plans for the recreation site.

Last year, feuding shareholders settled out of court on a dispute involving the future of the facility that sits just outside city limits off the end of the

Takhini Hot Springs Road. It paved the way to enable current shareholders to focus on the work that is now being done.

And that’s exactly where the focus is.

Standing in the parking lot, Umbrich noted an interpretive panel about the hot springs will greet visitors when they arrive, while a wooden walkway will lead them into the building. There’ll also be an archway to walk through and landscape rocks will be in place in the parking lot.

The hot springs will still have the same activities - swimming or relaxing in the pool, the zip line, trail and wagon rides with the horses, camping and the retreat centre. However the owners are trying to create a more natural, relaxing and open atmosphere.

New holding tanks are being put in, while the new fencing will be lower and transparent.

Walking over to the pool, Umbrige pointed out the new wooden decking, like the fencing, will be moveable.

“As you can see, we’re recovering the whole edge of the pool and we’re fibreglassing it,“ he said as workers used equipment in the back part of the empty pool.

“This whole rim around the pool will be fibreglass and it’s a way of extending the life of the pool.“

As for just how long that will be, Umbrich grinned and commented: “Until we build a new pool.“

A test patch of fibreglass in the pool for the past three years showed no cracking like the rest of the concrete does in the spring.

The lawn next to the deck will become more than just the grassy area it is now, with sand traps in place and a deck so people can come out of the pool and have a place to relax.

Blue markings now on the ground mark where the sand traps will be. An outdoor cold shower area, sauna in the fall and massage cabin are expected to be in place as well.

All of it - down to the type of sand used on the sand traps - are an experiment for the long-term plans for the hot springs.

It will permit the hot springs to stay in business and give their owners an idea of what will work and what won’t in the long-range plans, Umbrich explained.

“The idea outdoors here is to just kind of jazz it up a bit, make it a more appealing place to be,“ he said.

Umbrich won’t say how much all the work is costing, but he noted it looks like everything will be on budget.

Past experience has taught Umbrich and other shareholders that with any renovations, take the estimate and triple it.

Though the cost didn’t catch the owners off-guard, the project wasn’t without some new discoveries.

“There’s been lots of surprises, but we were expecting surprises,“ Umbrich said.

Inside the change room, workers found plywood under the walls had rotted.

The entire change room is being revamped - the walls fixed to prevent such rotting in the future, automatic flush toilets and warm showers thanks to the change that will see the old sauna become the new hot water room.

Granite countertops will be in place for the sinks.

“People are going to be surprised,“ Umbrich said, noting that when most people hear about the renovations being done, the first thing they ask about is the change rooms.

“Everybody’s happy to hear there’s renovations,“ he said.

A more spacious front entrance will feature a shoe area where visitors take off their outdoor shoes to put on the now-required indoor shoes.

There’ll be a retail space selling things like pool shoes, shampoo, hand cream and phone cards.

Bracelets will also be sold for each day’s swim, allowing campers and the like to come and go from the pool.

Meanwhile, the restaurant will feature new paint, as will the rest of the building.

The hot springs will be opening a little later than planned.

It’s one piece of plumbing - a toilet bracket - that will prevent the renovated facility from opening on June 1 as planned.

“It has to be manufactured in Ontario before they (the supplier) can ship it to us,“ Umbrich said.

It’s expected the facility will still open in early June, though the exact date is unknown.