Members of the Sans Souci Sea Devils Swim Club are urging Georges River Council to take the plunge and approve the $1 million upgrade of the pool.
The pool was supposed to close last year for a much needed upgrade but work was postponed.
Funds for the upgrade are to come from the State Government’s Stronger Communities Fund which was given to the council following the merger of Hurstville and Kogarah councils.
Next Monday night’s council meeting is supposed to approve the tender contract for the pool’s upgrade works.
But there were concerns over behind-the-scenes lobbying to have the funding transferred to other uses.
Georges River Council’s Finance and Governance Committee unanimously voted to recommend that, at the next Council Meeting, the tender contract be awarded for the project, a council spokesman said.
“As the NSW government has approved the allocation of these funds to this project they cannot be redirected without the consent of the NSW government,” he said.
“At this time, Council has no plans (nor does it have any approval) to redirect the funds to another project.”
Sans Souci Sea Devils Swim Club president Christi Johnson said the pool urgently needed an upgrade to bring more people back to the much-loved community swimming centre.
“We have been waiting a number of years,” Christi said.
“The pool was meant to close last year for an upgrade but this was delayed.
“We have had problems with the heating for many years. Last winter kids were getting out of water blue from the cold.
It’s an ongoing problem. The problem is that we have domestic not industrial heaters and these keep breaking down.”
“Broken tiles are another problem. There have been reports of people cutting themselves on broken tiles.
“My kids have come home from the pool with cuts to their hands and feet.
“The centre management is fantastic and our club has a great relationship with them, but we definitely need the upgrade to bring the pool up to standard.”
The Sea Devils Swim Club has about 150 members from five-years to open age.
“We don’t just use it for training but for recreation,” Christi said.
“The pool as got a great feel about it. The space is amazing. It’s a great space for the community and it will be enhanced by the upgrade.
“This upgrade will attract more clients. I think we have lost members to other pools since they were upgraded. This will bring many more of the community through the doors.”
Jesse Goodyear, 18, trains with the Sans Souci squad and recently competed in the Commonwealth Games trials in Brisbane.
He trains about 20 hours a week at Sans Souci pool and said the club has been waiting a long time for the upgrade.
“The pool gets very cold in winter and sometimes it is unusable,” he said. “There are tiles missing which can be hazardous. I’m wary of it but its the little kids who could get hurt.
“It’s very exciting about the upgrade. They have been talking about it for a while and now it is happening.
“It’s a really nice location and now everyone will enjoy it even more.”
Sans Souci Swim Academy coach, Olympian Craig Stevens said the pool needs upgraded filtration and heaters.
“We struggle in winter to keep the water warm,” Craig said. “It’s hard to keep the members swimming outdoors in the cold.”
He said the upgraded heaters will help get more kids swimming through the winter.
Craig said the pool is much more than a training centre.
“It’s the people you meeting when the locals come in first thing in the morning,” he said. “I’ve met some great characters. It’s a great little community,” he said.
“The benefits the that upgrade will add to the community going into the future will be tremendous.”
