Need a break from the summer heat? Cool off at a city-run outdoor pool or at the beach. There are three outdoor pools in Scarborough: Heron Park, Knob Hill, and McGregor Park. They are all now open daily from 10am to 8pm through September 6. During a heat wave the Heron Park and McGregor Park pools will stay open until 11:45pm. Splash pads and wading pools are also now open daily, as is Kidstown Water Park on Birchmount Road.
If you’d prefer to cool off at the beach, Bluffers Park will be supervised by lifeguards everyday from 10:30am to 7:30pm until August 9 and then from 10:30am to 7:00pm August 10 to September 7. Beach maintenance hours are the same as the lifeguard hours and include regular grooming of the sand and cleaning of bathrooms and change rooms.
Toronto Beaches use a flag system to designate swimming areas and communicate swimming conditions. A green flag means conditions are safe for swimming. A yellow flag means swim with caution and be careful of hazards such as waves. A red flag means danger, do not swim and no flag means there are no lifeguards on duty.
While the city does test the water quality at swimming beaches everyday, the city suggests using common sense before deciding whether or not to enter the water as the lab results can take up to 24 hours and conditions can change quickly, even from one hour to the next. For example, the city suggests avoiding swimming for up to 48 hours after a heavy storm as rainfall can wash contaminants from surfaces into the lake. Wet sand, shallow water and warm temperatures can also increase bacteria levels.
The city recommends washing hands or using hand sanitizer after playing with sand by the water’s edge.
