Gold Coast ocean pools: Paralympian's letter to Tom Tate calls for investment
A Gold medallist’s letter to Tom Tate further supports a proposal by a quadriplegic pioneer and a Glitter Strip identity for the return of ocean pools to the Gold Coast.
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UPDATE
AN open letter to Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate from para-triathlete Katie Kelly calls for ocean pools investment – to become a more diverse and inclusive city.
The Rio Paralympics gold medallist’s missive to the mayor says saltwater ocean pools on the Gold Coast would allow people with disabilities to enjoy the regions beaches.
“Together we must invest in an ocean pool that will allow everyone in our community to safely access the beach,” the two-time world champion’s letter said.
“Asides from the significant economic gains from developing an ocean pool, the Gold Coast City Council has a unique opportunity to develop a world-class ocean pool that will rival anywhere in Australia and overseas.”
The letter asked the Mayor to imagine a life a without access to the beach with Ms Kelly detailing how one in five people in the community have a disability.
“As a person with a hearing loss and legally blind (due to a condition known as Usher Syndrome), I know how it can also become frustrating when the same opportunities made available to abled bodies citizens are not extended to those with a disability,” she said.
“I write to you Mayor Tate and ask you to imagine a life where you could not go to the beach.
“For many with a disability due to being in a wheelchair, due to physical conditions that affect their breathing or due to being amputee or they might suffer seizures – the beach is not accessible or safe.”
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The idea to bring back ocean pools to the Gold Coast has had a major push lately with proponent Billy James leading a large group supporting the reinstallation.
The Surfers Paradise personality delivered supportive testimonials from the Australian Olympic Committee and a change.org petition with 13,000-plus signatures to city council last Friday. He also has surf club bosses’ backing.
Cr Tate said he is on board the pitch to install ocean pools, saying he believed Burleigh was the preferred site but just one was viable.
Mr James is hoping for a network of pools and ask formally asked for a council to fund a feasibility study, with University of NSW data showing for $3 million to $8 million construction costs, anticipated economic benefits runs at $6-$10m annually.
Last year Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Association also threw their support behind the idea with a letter from CEO John Swete Kelly saying how beneficial ocean pools are to create independence for members of the public who have accessibility issues to the ocean.
“Members of the community with accessibility issues and their families would welcome the establishment of the ocean pools project as it would offer them the opportunity to enjoy some of the best beach environments on the east coast of Australia,” the letter said.
“We will continue to offer our support to community initiatives that provide opportunities for the 17 per cent of the community and their families who are living with a disability.”
EARLIER
A GOLD Coaster pushing for saltwater ocean pools has Mayor Tom Tate on board with a proposal to put the first one in at Burleigh Heads.
Ocean baths proponent Billy James ultimately wants a network of 15 dotting the city coastline but Cr Tate believes it will be just one at Burleigh.
Mr James led a large group supporting the reinstallation of ocean pools on Friday to deliver to city council supportive testimonials from surf clubs bosses, the Australian Olympic Committee and a change.org petition with 13,000-plus signatures.
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Cr Tate said he wasn’t opposed to the concept but could only see it working at the same site of a former ocean bath at Burleigh Heads.
Cr Tate said he had already spoken to Burleigh businesses about the proposal but he could not see pools placed at other beaches.
“The difference between us and Sydney is their beaches have a lot of rocky areas so you can cut an ocean pool into that safely,” he said.
“My suggestion is focus on that and if it’s doable then we’ll look at funding but in terms of other areas I don’t think it’s financially viable.”
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Mr James, a longtime Glitter Strip businessman and community stalwart, has pushed for the concept for five years and said he was delighted to be able to hand to council the petition – championed by pioneering Gold Coast spinal cord research fundraiser Perry Cross, who is paralysed from the neck down.
“The idea of the proposal and the petition from Perry Cross, is to ask the council to explore the opportunity for ocean pools,” Mr James said.
“The proposal goes through all the elements and compelling reasons why there’s a want for an ocean pool, how it works for the community. It’s backed up by an (environmental and economic) study done by the University of New South Wales water laboratory, one of the top ten in the world.”
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Mr James said Burleigh was most likely to be the first area chosen if plans were approved but he would like to see 15 pools along the coastline from The Spit to Snapper Rocks.
“Sydney has something like 35 pools, and there’s over a hundred in NSW,” he said.
“It begs the question, aren’t we good enough? Why haven’t we got one? We have gone up and down the Coast looking at reasonable spots to put them.
“Burleigh Heads used to have one, Snapper Rocks and Rainbow Bay also.
“I suspect we’d probably aim for Burleigh Heads. It is a focal point and there used to be one there. It is virtually a natural alcove there and headland just on the eastern side on the Pavilion. Most of the business fraternity down there and the surf club are vocally for this.
“There are other spots in Burleigh, there’s no reason why we couldn’t look off the groin and just to the north of Burleigh Beach.”
Mr Cross, left a C2 ventilated quadriplegic after a rugby tackle accident, was with Mr James at council on Friday.
“My passion for this proposal grew over time, when I realised people with disabilities and ageing people didn’t have the proper facilities on the coastal strip of the ocean,” he said. “Even for small kids and tourists who aren’t strong swimmers. That was my driving force behind pushing the petition forward.
“We need safe options for people to access the ocean. We do have some facilities now with beach mats and ocean wheelchairs, but if the surf is huge or even if it’s not, people want to feel safe entering the ocean. They want to feel confident to enjoy what nature provides.
“As much as these are man-made structures, they allow people to enter the surf and enter the ocean to enjoy the features of nature safely without fear.”
Mr Cross admitted the project – which has been years in the making – lost momentum but said it recently gained community support again, possibly because COVID-19 made people focus on their own backyard.
He said the thousands of signatures on the petition demonstrates ocean pools will not only be used by the disability community.
“A lot of people aren’t confident entering the surf, so this would allow the opportunity to enter the beach and enjoy the water while feeling safe and confident,” he said.
“It takes the pressures away from our surf lifesavers. I think this enhances our beaches, not detract from our beaches.
“I think it could be a great asset for the Gold Coast. New South Wales has over 100 of these scattered all across their coastline.
“I think it’s time for the Gold Coast to embrace this.”
Australian Olympic Committee CEO Matt Carroll’s testimonial in Mr James’ proposal for council says the AOC has “great pleasure supporting the feasibility study”.
Mr Carroll’s letter adds while ocean pools would not be venues for Olympic Games competition or training, they “would certainly showcase the Gold Coast’s great tradition of supporting and promoting the importance of sport and benefits of sport for the community and the commitment to sustainability”.
Gold Coast World Surfing Reserve chairman Andrew McKinnon noted previous city ocean pools at Burleigh and Snapper Rocks – now gone – were “hugely popular”.
“Sadly, they have not survived the passage of time and the Gold Coast is now without this amenity,” he wrote.
“Billy James has grown up on the Gold Coast beaches and is passionate that the Gold Coast could have beach pools like Sydney’s beaches.
“As long as the infrastructure does not cause detrimental damage to an existing surf break, and Billy’s plans show no evidence of that, I have absolutely no hesitation in supporting his beach pool proposal.”
A raft of city surf club bosses including Surfers Paradise, Tugun and Burleigh Heads have pledged support for the concept, Mr James’ proposal notes.
A University of NSW study notes ocean pools cost $3-$8 million each to install in natural rock formations but typically create $6-$10m in economic benefit annually based on visitation.
In Sydney, its ocean pools network which includes the famed Icebergs at Bondi Beach is considered a major tourism drawcard.
Originally published as Gold Coast ocean pools: Paralympian's letter to Tom Tate calls for investment