Adelaide Aquatic Centre costing large amounts of money, ‘should be closed’
THE Adelaide Aquatic Centre has cost ratepayers $250,000 in just nine months and should be closed, a city councillor says.
THE Adelaide Aquatic Centre has cost ratepayers $250,000 in just nine months and should be closed, city councillor Anne Moran says.
She said that only a minority of Adelaide City Council ratepayers used the ageing North Adelaide pool and it was time to “name a date” for its closure if another provider could not be found.
“We tried to gift it to the State Government about 10 years ago, which they rejected laughingly, recognising what a burden it was,” said Cr Moran, who once sat on the Adelaide Aquatic Centre Authority, the body responsible for administering the centre.
“It’s a state facility we’re running with absolutely no help. We’re basically the last man standing.”
Cr Moran said that money put towards restoring the site in recent years had been “reactive, not proactive” and major upgrades were overdue.
“It makes me sad to say, but we’re at the end of the road now and I think it’s dawning on even the newer councillors that something severe has to happen.”
A council report tabled late last month blamed the $250,000 loss, incurred during the nine months since the end of June, on poor public attendance and lower-than-expected enrolments in the centre’s swim school.
But North Ward Cr Phil Martin said the council had a core responsibility to maintain the service for city council ratepayers who used the centre.
“I certainly want to make sure that in the coming budget process we have a very open and public debate about this and other council-operated businesses to ensure they are not lost in a clean-out of money-losing services,” he said.
A spokeswoman from the State Government Office of Recreation and Sport last week confirmed it had no plans to take on the centre, stating it was the council’s responsibility.
Council management, amid a major review of commercial operations, had not ruled out trying to outsource the site to a private provider but a spokesman said there were no current plans.
The spokesman said membership had remained stable despite the opening of Marion’s SA Aquatic and Leisure Centre — with groups such as Norwood Swimming Club, Water Polo SA and numerous schools still reliant on the centre.
Norwood Swimming Club president Scott Ireland said around 120 of the club’s 280 members trained at the centre daily.
He said if the facility were to close it would prove disastrous for the club.
“The club would not be able to find a 50-metre pool space in winter as no other exists within a reasonable travelling time near the city,” Mr Ireland said.
“We would also see a number of promising young swimmers and their families have to make hard decisions regarding their future sporting careers.
“It would be a disaster for a sport that produced a gold medal at the recent Olympics for this country.”