For the second time in just six days eager swimmers have been unexpectedly turned away from the Tamworth City Pool, while a staff shortage saw the Nundle Pool unexpectedly closed for the fourth time this season on Monday.
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These incidents are just the latests on a growing wrap sheet of closures and malfunctions throughout the Tamworth Regional Council facilities, which saw City pool closed to the public at 2pm last Friday, citing “circulation issues.”
The incidents couldn’t come at a worse time as the region suffers one of the longest heat waves on record, while hundreds of festival tourists are looking to come through the gates in order to cool down.
On Wednesday the City pool was only closed from 5am until 6.30pm, although that still saw a number of recreational and club swimmers left without the use of a facility.
There was also some concerns raised about the operators communication, after being left stranded on the street out the front of the pool without a reason as to why the gates weren’t opened for some time.
TRC Acting Manager of Sport and Recreation Murray Russell said that the closures were “not unexpected.”
“City pool opened late at 6.30am to allow the chlorine level to reach appropriate level for use,” he said.
“These short outages are unfortunate, however not unexpected even despite regular maintenance given the age of the pools. This is also the reason council is exploring options for a new more reliable facility.”
Last year it was announced that planning is underway for a new Aquatic Facility to be built at the Sports Dome, alongside the new Centre For Sporting Excellence.
While there is no doubt that something needed to be done about the two aging facilities in Tamworth, TRC have repeatedly made it clear that a new facility will come at the cost of the two existing facilities.
Those two parcels of land would then be sold off to the highest bidder to help fund the new facility, a decision that has so far divided the town, with a community consultation period currently open through the TRC website.
President of the Tamworth City Swim Club Grant Simm has also not been surprised by the spate of unexpected closures, particularly at City.
“You can’t blame council for not spending money on it, it is like an old car where you just throw good money after bad,” he said.
