Council backs new pool over repair

Wanaka's swimming pool will be replaced by a new pool at the Three Parks subdivision, following a...
Wanaka's swimming pool will be replaced by a new pool at the Three Parks subdivision, following a decision by the Queenstown Lakes District Council yesterday. Photo from ODT files.
A proposed upgrade of Wanaka's community pool appears to be off the table and the Queenstown Lakes District Council has instead agreed to bring forward the design of a new pool development at Three Parks.

The issue was discussed for almost an hour in Queenstown, including a 30-minute session with the public excluded, where legal advice was offered to councillors by chief executive Adam Feeley.

Following that, the council agreed to include $11.8 million in the draft 2015-25 long-term plan (LTP) as allocated funding for the new pool development near the sports hall.

The initial recommendation was for the design of that development to begin in 2017-18 and construction to be completed in 2019-20.

That was amended by the council, which proposed instead for the design process to begin in 2015-16 - subject to the date being confirmed during the LTP process.

The council would also determine what components and design should be included and consider whether any components might reasonably be constructed as part of the Northlake development.

Construction was also brought forward, proposed to be completed in 2016-17, subject to the date being confirmed during the LTP process.

The recommendation also stated the Wanaka community be ''encouraged to fundraise to reduce rating impact'', and officers were to report back in February with options to develop a design in 2014-15.

Officers were also directed to identify any surplus land for possible sale as additional council revenue requirements for the new development.

The inclusion of $200,000 in the draft LTP for additional building remediation at the Wanaka Community Pool in 2015-16 was deleted.

Cr Cath Gilmour abstained from the vote and all other councillors voted in support of the amended recommendation.

The wide-ranging discussions included water chlorination options, co-location and the level of fundraising the community would be expected to contribute.

Mayor Vanessa van Uden said the latter remained an unknown, but Wanaka residents had proved through the recent Gigatown competition if they got behind something ''they can do it''.

The council was ''happy'' to contribute to the balance of the cost ''if the community can fundraise to get it down to a more palatable level of debt''.

Cr Gilmour said it was ''hard to get excited'' about fundraising for a pool which would not be built for another five years, but Ms van Uden questioned why that would not get the community excited.

''If you want the pool, go out and get it.

''We have created ... a way of thinking about things that if we want something we just go to the council and the council funds it ... that's a really good way and valid way to do it.

''But we have not created the same expectation that says `if you want something, go and get going on it and prove it'.''

Cr Calum MacLeod said the original recommendation was ''an attempt to try and appeal to everyone and it's failing''.

''Feedback in the past 26 hours has been overwhelmingly in support of not [adopting] this recommendation.

''It's not what the community require; it's not what the community requested; and I think that the Northlake pool is essentially a red herring that we should ignore.

''If Northlake wasn't there, what would we be doing?''Ms van Uden said the community consultation and subsequent hearing was not a ''poll''.

''It's not saying because 53% of people wanted something that is what we must do.''

Sometimes in local government, the decision that ''makes them the happiest'' might not be the best in the long term, she said.

After the amended recommendation was adopted, Ms van Uden said she was ''particularly mindful of the time issue''.

''We need to be quite clear that there is some caution from me, personally, in terms of timing and fitting it in before other demands ... as part of the long-term process.

''It's important the Wanaka community understands that it's a whole process and [there are] a whole lot of other projects that people want and are required that we need to be considering this as part of.''

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