Planning application lodged for aquatic centre

THE long-awaited aquatic centre for Torquay has achieved a major milestone, with a planning application lodged for the project.

Public exhibition for the Surf Coast Aquatic and Health Centre began on Wednesday last week.

Valued at $40 million, the centre will be built in Torquay North next to and connecting with Wurdi Baierr Stadium.

The two-storey building will have a maximum building height of 11.7 metres, with a total leasable floor area of 3,900sqm, and there will be 275 parking spaces provided.

On the ground floor, there will be a 25-metre pool, program pool, separate school change facilities, allied health facilities, café, consultation rooms, standard change rooms and kitchen facilities.

The first floor will comprise a gym and associated office, multipurpose rooms, storage and plant facilities.

The works will also include a redesign of the car parking facilities, accessways and road networks to allow loading from College Lane and additional road reserve from Surf Coast Highway connecting to Wadawarrung Way.

The north-western netball court will be demolished to allow for construction, and Wurdi Baierr Stadium will be partly demolished to allow for an internal connection.

According to the planning application, prepared for the shire by consultants Urbis, the proposed building “exhibits architectural excellence, with a highly resolved interface at each façade, with visual cues to the existing buildings in the Civil Precinct”.

“The proposed materials and finishes will feature natural concrete, aluminium cladding and sandstone/ textured concrete render and timber look cladding.”

The application lists seven reasons why the proposal should be supported. These include:

• The works are consistent with the relevant clauses of the Surf Coast Planning Scheme, particularly the General Residential Zone and the Public Parks and Recreation Zone, which seek to facilitate non-residential buildings that serve community benefit
• The distinctive design of the proposed development will enhance the emerging built form character of the Civic Precinct and Surf Coast Highway as a gateway into the town centre, and
• The proposal represents an outcome in accordance with the recently approved Development Plan for the site and the Community and Civic Precinct Future Land Use Plan (2022), which nominates an aquatic centre within the application site.

The Surf Coast Aquatic and Health Centre has more than $42 million in local, state and federal funding committed towards it.

The centre was originally envisaged as a facility with a 50m indoor pool, but the council resolved in June 2022 to proceed with an outdoor 25m pool and two indoor program pools.

This was further revised in February 2023 to have the 25m pool indoors instead of outdoors, and have only one indoor program pool.