Kingborough Mayor, Paula Wriedt said Council supported the building of an aquatic centre in Kingborough, though it was something that could only be afforded with State and Federal funding help.
“Council acknowledged that it is unable to construct an aquatic centre of this size within its existing budget,” Cr Wriedt said.
“Council resolved to lobby the State and Federal Governments for funding and look at this issue from a regional perspective, servicing the needs of the community from Taroona right through to the South.
“Due to a large amount of public interest in a pool for Kingborough, the Tasmanian Government provided funding to Council to undertake a detailed feasibility study for such a facility.
“Council engaged C Leisure consultancy to undertake a feasibility study into the potential for a pool located at the Kingborough Sports Precinct.
“The report highlighted that the community didn’t just want a swimming pool, they told us they wanted an Aquatic Centre that catered for the diverse needs of every member of the community.
“They mentioned the need to accommodate learn to swimmers, lap swimmers, causal swimmers, small pools that catered for families, water sports and a diverse range of other water programs.
“Following a consultation with stakeholders and the broader community the consultants recommended a design.
“This design was costed at $40.5m, with an additional $4.5m required to relocate a variety of existing sporting clubs in the Kingborough Sporting Precinct as well a running cost of approximately $700 – 750 thousand a year.
“Both the capital construction amount and the annual operating costs are above the Council’s financial capacity.
“The running costs alone would require an increase in the general rates of 3%.
“The report indicated that national standards are generally that high-quality Aquatic Centres with a 50m pool generally require a population base of at least 100,000 people.”