Warrnambool's AquaZone 'fast becoming unfit for purpose', councillor says

Councillor Angie Paspaliaris said AquaZone was "fast becoming unfit for purpose", and for a growing city the size of Warrnambool it needed "urgent future planning".

The council has drafted a plan to conduct an aquatic feasibly study, but funding is needed for it to progress.

IN OTHER NEWS:

"I do look forward to council being able to secure funding to get this off the ground," Cr Paspaliaris said at this week's city council meeting.

"As the town grows also there needs to be some accounting for this as well."

Cr Ben Blain said the councillors were working towards realising some of the projects in its new council plan such as the aquatic centre.

An upgrade of AquaZone formed part of Cr Blain's pitch to the community during his election campaign last year.

He came up with a bucket list of ideas for the revamp such as waterslides, spa, plunge pool and even bringing back the popular diving board.

He also flagged the possibility of building a whole new facility on a greenfield site as part of his vision to turn AquaZone into a state-of-the-art facility that was more suitable for hosting major swim meets.

Cr Max Taylor has previously said the outdoor pool was 60 years old and in need of money being spent on it.

Cr Blain also told this week's meeting he would like to see some action on the Brierly Reserve masterplan.

In 2014, the council started the rollout of what was touted to be a "Cinderella transformation" to turn the area into north Warrnambool's main recreation area - the city's second-largest public reserve behind Albert Park.

The grounds, which once surrounded the former psychiatric hospital, were to be turned into a community park but progress on the makeover stalled.

The masterplan for the 12.4 hectare site includes a new soccer field and a multi-purpose community building with space for pre-school sessions as its centrepiece.

Last year, the city council put a new $8.1 million community centre with an early learning facility on the drawing board for 2024, but whether it would go at Brierly or Dennington had not been decided.

IN OTHER NEWS:

CORONAVIRUS STORIES:

We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we aim to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. If you would like to support our journalists you can subscribe here.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:

Have you signed up to The Standard's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in the south-west.