Repairs underway at Maryborough’s aquatic centre – again

The muddy waters of the Mary River have again been cleaned out of the pools at Maryborough’s aquatic centre as the council carries out repairs after two floods in as many months.

The muddy waters of the Mary River have been washed out of Maryborough’s pools for the second time this year – but the council is warning the aquatic centre is likely to be closed for some time.

After two floods within the space of weeks caused significant damage at the centre, the pool is now expected to be closed until late June.

For the second time this year, the pools have been drained, cleaned and sanitised while all the flooring in the office, kiosk and gym has been removed and the concrete floors cleaned ready for new surfaces to be laid.

The toilet and change room areas have been cleaned ready for repair works to start, while minor landscaping repairs to the gardens have also begun.

Broken tiles in the pools are in the process of being replaced, with power to be restored to the site this week and builders to begin major works early next month.

“Having two natural disasters sure did knock our pool around unfortunately.,” Deputy Mayor Paul Truscott told the Chronicle

Earlier this month, Cr Truscott said he would support exploring options to prevent future flooding at the centre.

He said that could mean a floodproof levee around the aquatic centre or an earth wall at Queens Park to try to prevent floodwaters from entering the CBD altogether.

For now though, Cr Truscott knows the focus is getting people doing laps again.

“Works are underway to restore the pool as soon as possible, but due to so many circumstances beyond our control, some things are taking a bit longer,” he said

“While we can’t do laps or recreational swimming at the Maryborough pool at the moment, it’s wonderful that we’ve got places like SplashSide to go to where families and kids can still go and get wet and have fun.

“I know a lot of swimmers and everyone is keen to get back in the water, we’ll get there as soon as possible and appreciate your patience in this time.”

Residents with annual passes will be offered an extension of time on their passes based on how long the aquatic centre is closed.