A South Surrey mother is calling for adjustments to the universal change room at Grandview Heights Aquatic Centre, after her daughter reported being flashed during an afternoon visit last week.
The woman – who asked to not be identified in order to protect her daughter’s privacy – said a man changing in one of the stalls left the door open and exposed himself to the 21-year-old at around 2 p.m. May 4.
He then followed her daughter for a few minutes, she added.
“I don’t know what he was trying to,” the woman said. “(My daughter) was trying to get into her locker to get her clothes to change.”
The woman said police and pool staff were alerted, and an image of the man was found on the facility’s security cameras.
Surrey RCMP confirmed that Mounties were alerted to an incident at approximately 2:15 p.m. on May 4.
Cpl. Vanessa Munn said only that the matter “is still under investigation.”
The mother noted it’s not the first time that a concerning incident has occurred at the aquatic centre, located at 16855 24 Ave., where the universal change room was designed with an open layout accessible to all, with private stalls and showers.
In June 2016, a “peeping Tom” was banned from the facility after a woman reported being filmed while showering in one of the private stalls.
READ MORE: ‘Peeping Tom’ banned from city facilities after Grandview pool user recorded
Officials at the time confirmed that, for ventilation purposes and to comply with health regulations, there are some sides of the shower stalls “that don’t go right to the ground.”
In an emailed statement Friday (May 6), officials from the city’s parks, recreation and culture department said no similar concerns have been fielded “in the past few years.”
Structural changes to the universal change rooms to improve privacy were made shortly after the facility opened in 2016, and monitoring of the spaces is part of a regular staff rotation to increase patron safety, the statement adds.
“Staff were made aware of the recent incident on May 4 and followed proper protocol.”
No further information was provided by police or city officials.
tholmes@peacearchnews.com
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