More than 20 residents, several with young children, attended the public forum of Thursday's finance and corporate accountability committee meeting.
They urged committee members to order the council-controlled Lakes Leisure board to reinstate shared access for commercial swim schools to the learners pool in the $18 million aqualand facility.
Wakatipu Swim School and Water Discovery Central Otago had an agreement with Lakes Leisure to use the pool on a regular basis.
However, Lakes Leisure realised it had a $70,000 energy bill shortfall last December and restricted commercial swim schools to off-peak Sundays to encourage more use of the Aqualand Learn to Swim programme.
Wakatipu Swim School director Jane Hughes said there was no reason the existing learn to swim providers could not work together.
A count of swimmers last week found two to six hours of space were potentially available every day when the pool was not being used by the community.
Mrs Hughes said with careful timetabling, 40 to 92 swimmers could be taught each day, which could generate $75-$172.50 in Lakes Leisure revenue, not including the extra money from each swimmer's admission fee.
Water Discovery owner Emma Carpenter said the playing field was not level and families were left without a choice.
The Sunday slot "severely restricted" the available time to teach.
Dr Tonya Cruikshank, a mother of three young children, said too many people drowned in New Zealand and both Water Discovery and the Wakatipu Swim School had proved over the years to be committed to teaching valuable swim safety lessons.
"We, as a community, want to have an option that they can teach our children. We as a community wanted and supported a pool so that working towards this goal could continue year-round.
"Without reasonable access to the pool this will not happen."
Later in the meeting, Crs Gillian Macleod and Vanessa van Uden asked how Lakes Leisure was fulfilling its statement of intent to "support community participation by maintaining an appropriate balance between direct programme delivery and facility hire".
Lakes Leisure chief executive Fiona McKissock said the board had been through a robust process and had made the restriction in the best interest of its statement of intents.
Cr John Mann said there was a difference between commercial and community participation. Chief executive Duncan Field said the board had come to a considered decision and made long-term judgements, which he did not think the council was in a position to challenge.
Committee chairman John S. Wilson acknowledged Lakes Leisure representatives had not been present during the public forum. He asked board members to consider the submissions then give feedback on whether changes to access needed to be made.
