Neighbour complaint could end decades-long backyard swimming lessons in St. Thomas

After teaching kids how to swim in her backyard pool for over three decades, a St. Thomas woman says her business is at risk after a neighbour filed a complaint against her.

Longtime swim instructor Joy Dawdy said she feels "apprehensive" as she works to resolve the issue with the city. 

"I want to get along with my neighbours. I don't want anybody to be upset with me, but I also know that I've got lots of people who want me to continue doing what I'm doing," Dawdy said. "I believe I have a gift for being able to get through to people who have had those fears [of water]." 

Last August, Dawdy said, a city bylaw officer showed up at her front door to inform her that she could no longer run a swimming business out of her home after another resident filed a complaint.

"I thought it was somebody playing a joke on me and realized very quickly that it was quite serious," Dawdy said, adding she does not know the specifics of the original complaint or the person who filed it.

In St. Thomas, home businesses cannot have an outdoor component due to potential impacts on neighbours, according to Lou Pompilii, the city's director of planning and building services.

"It can create impacts for neighbours in terms of noise, traffic, people coming in and out, and parking on the streets," he said. "It has the potential to create conflict."

CBC News spoke to some of Dawdy's neighbours who said they have heard other residents talk about too much traffic on the street when people come in for lessons and increased noise from Dawdy's backyard. 

"It's actually quite nice to hear the kids laugh and play," said Kelly Zegers, who has lived two doors down from Dawdy for over 15 years and said she has never had a problem with the swim classes. 

Edith Nimmo, whose backyard faces Dawdy's backyard pool, said she feels the same: "I sort of look forward to the lessons."

After meeting with St. Thomas city officials this week, Dawdy learned she would need to apply for a zoning amendment to operate her business, a process that can take around three months.

She said she's planning to start her application but worries she won't be able to get through the process before this year's swimming season.

"I would be heartbroken if I can't help others," she said. 

Over 34 years of swimming lessons

Dawdy has been teaching swimming lessons out of her current home for 34 years and taught lessons in her parents' backyard pool before that.

Her journey as a swim instructor started by chance, she said, when she worked at a daycare centre and a parent asked her for swimming lessons. 

"Then her neighbour found out, and then other neighbours were finding out, and I kind of went, 'Oh, there might be something here.'"

With such a long career, she's taught multiple generations of swimmers throughout St. Thomas. 

"It's really upsetting to hear that someone who's been involved in the community and helping all of us learn how to swim may not be able to do this," said Ami Vader, who took lessons with Dawdy when she was a child and later sent her own daughter for lessons at just three months old. 

"That individual training is very helpful, and you can build that relationship with it," she said. "Swimming safety and even just being by the water is pretty scary for kids and parents, so having someone that you know and trust is important."

Dawdy said this isn't the first time there's been a complaint against her business. She said former neighbours have approached her about issues like parking and swim lesson hours, and she has been responsive by asking parents to park at a nearby school and ending lessons at an earlier hour.

She said she wished the latest complainant would have talked to her directly.

"I'm willing to work with somebody; I just need to know their wants and needs," Dawdy said.