Council pools need regional focus

A REVIEW into how Victorian councils build and run swimming pools has called for a more regionally-based approach to providing them.
The Auditor-General’s report, Local Government Service Delivery: Recreational Facilities, was tabled last week, and may have implications on how a pool in the Surf Coast Shire could be built or if it should be built here at all.
The audit by Acting Auditor-General Dr Peter Frost assessed the effectiveness of local government service delivery of aquatic recreation centres (ARCs), examining swimming pools in six municipalities across the state, including the City of Greater Bendigo, the City of Glen Eira, and the South Gippsland Shire.
It found Sports Recreation Victoria (which provides grants to councils) needed to improve regional planning so that facility planning and development was well co-ordinated and regional impacts were considered, particularly in the case of new developments that may affect neighbouring councils.
Surf Coast Shire councillors voted in December to stop all planning on the pool proposal but will retain land in Torquay North and will work closely with the City of Greater Geelong on the “development of future aquatic infrastructure that will potentially serve communities in both municipalities”.
The audit noted larger ARCs in Victoria were mostly council-owned, as the relatively low return on investment meant the private sector had limited interest.
The report found the cost of providing ARCs – the proposed pool in Torquay North had a $29 million price tag – should be balanced against social and other community outcomes, but this was not being effectively evaluated.
“It was pleasing to see that the audited councils have effectively engaged with their communities for ARC-related matters,” Dr Frost said.
“However, the significant state and government investment in ARCs must be seen in the light of broader financial stability issues facing the local government sector, including uncertainty about future grant allocations and the introduction of rate capping.
“This heightens the need for councils to better evaluate ARC activities in relation to their overall social, health and wellbeing objectives to justify the ongoing investment.”
To download the full report, head to audit.vic.gov.au.