Wednesday, 08 September 2010
A $10,000 grant has paid for a temporary marquee over one end of the Whakatane Aquatic Centre’s outside pool to keep swimmers warm.
Whakatane Amateur Swimming Club past president Melvene Surtees said the club successfully applied to the New Zealand Community Trust for the cover on the district’s behalf. All swimmers using the pool would benefit, she said.
“The cover should create a warm air pocket over the pool, making it not so cold for swimmers when they stop and rest,” she said.
The heated indoor pool is unavailable due to building repairs under way to correct design and structural problems that have dogged the building since its opening in December 2001. The council expects the repairs and associated expenses to cost $4.6 million.
The marquee was sourced from a Tauranga hire company, as no Whakatane hire company was able to supply one big enough.
Mrs Surtees said the money was not sufficient to pay for a marquee to cover the entire pool.
The council hopes to re-open the entire pool complex by January 1. The outside pool re-opened to the public in July – with the water heated to between 26 and 28 degrees – so competitive swimmers could resume training.
During the dismantling stage, the council had gathered evidence to support a claim against pool architect Andrews Scott Cotton. Auckland law firm Brookfields was managing both the evidence-gathering and litigation process for the council.
The council would pay the cost of repairs to the centre, which includes providing alternative employment for staff of pool management company Total Leisure Concepts, but hopes to recover as much of that as possible through litigation. Legal action is expected to occur late this year or early in 2011.
Andrews Scott Cotton has been involved in the building of the Taupo baths, Napier’s saltwater bath complex, Palmerston North’s Lido baths and Queenstown’s aquatic centre.