Last splash for community pool

THE nearly-eighty-year-old outdoor community pool in Brown Hill is set to be demolished with City of Ballarat councillors deciding its fate during their regular council meeting on Wednesday last week.

The move to demolish was coupled with the adoption of the Brown Hill Recreation Reserve Masterplan, and although many commended the document, the destruction of the pool proved a controversial issue.

With factors including a previously estimated $1.3 million refurbishment cost, a reported lack of attendance and the site’s deterioration driving the decision, the pool is set to be replaced with a $2 million children’s splash park.

The issue saw six submissions during the council meeting’s public question time as well as a further three during debate on the motion.

One of the presenters Sue Broadway argued the site would be better served with a replacement asset.

“[In the masterplan] the cricket oval’s being increased, the pavilion’s being increased, there’ll be changerooms, toilet facilities.

“That’s good they’re putting money into that. That’s replacing what’s already there but if you were to take the pool out of that scenario you need something to replace that facility.

“A pool is the cheaper option. If it was a good facility and it was maintained well, there would be an increase in people using that pool.”

Ms Broadway also argued the surveys used to gauge interest in preserving the community pool didn’t consider Brown Hill’s newly-arriving and surrounding residents.

Members of the Brown Hill Progress Association ran the pool since 2003 in response to a previous municipal attempt at closing the site.

They passed the reins back to the City of Ballarat in 2020, with BHPA secretary Brendan Stevens, who was a volunteer at the pool for 14 years, saying the groups weren’t able to maintain the degrading site.

Cr Peter Eddy spoke in favour of the motion and said the site’s transformation would better serve the greater community.

“When I look at Brown Hill, Black Hill, Ballarat North, we’ve got a splash park in Doveton Street, Ballarat North, two-and-a-half minutes’ driving time to Black Hill Pool, and the same distance again to Brown Hill Pool,” he said.

“If we look at that bigger picture of what’s good for our community and look at the fact that we have one centralised pool [in Black Hill], if we have that as the centralised point, we’ve got a splash park on either end.

“We have a great model for that whole of the north that services everyone and takes care of a lot of the population.”

Cr Ben Taylor voted against the motion, saying he was in support of every aspect of it except for the closure of the pool.

“We should be investing in these types of facilities as the city grows,” he said.

“I don’t think a pool versus a splash park is a life for life. I think it should be a pool and we should upgrade the pool that’s there.

“Even when the patronage was low and even when the days it’s open less than other facilities, it actually holds its own in relation to cost of this council.”

The motion was carried with three councillors including Crs Taylor, Amy Johnson and Samantha McIntosh voting against.

A State Government 2022 election commitment of $1 million was pledged in support of the masterplan with the potential to help fast track the pool’s replacement site.