A public swimming pool’s iconic dive tower price $170,000 to revive however cannot be used.
The Harold Holt Swim Centre’s 10m excessive dive tower within the southeast Melbourne suburb of Glen Iris was reopened as a historic monument in October after being unused and falling in disrepair for nearly 20 years.
Regardless of Stonnington Council spending near $4million to revive and improve the historic pool, named after Liberal prime minister Harold Holt who disappeared whereas swimming at sea in 1967, the diving tower is taken into account unsafe.
Due to heritage overlay, the tower needed to be restored to precisely to its unique design at a value of $170,000, which means it doesn’t meet fashionable well being and security requirements.
Former swim coach Grant Siedle, who labored on the pool in the course of the Eighties when the tower was a preferred function, was flabbergasted at that now all it’s match for is a monument.
Regardless of a hefty $170,000 invoice for its restoration the diving tower at Melbourne’s Harold Holt public swimming pool is deemed too unsafe to make use of
‘Council spent ratepayers’ cash to revive a diving tower that you just now cannot use,’ he advised A Present Affair.
‘That is simply silly.’
These commenting on the pool’s Fb web page agreed.
‘Such a disgrace that danger assessments, purple tape and the nanny state imply that youth of at the moment will not know the thrills, joys and terrors of leaping from the highest platform,’ one wrote.
‘Aaahh, my childhood in a pool! Find it irresistible! Disgrace we will not do bombs off the 10m…,’ stated one other.
Mr Seidle remembers the tower as a spotlight of enjoyment.
‘The dive pool was a giant occasion focus and folks used to solar bake across the edge and do dive bombs,’ he stated.
‘It could be disgrace if you cannot get the identical stage of enjoyable.
‘You’ll spend some huge cash and resurrect one thing that simply sits there and the seems to be a sure approach, that is simply illogical to me.’
The diving tower was a spotlight of household enjoyable for a few years however was closed in 2003 because it was deemed unsafe
Security considerations closed the dive tower in 2003 however in 2013, a petition from locals demanding it reopen spurred Stonnington Council to start planning restoration.
Nevertheless, after Heritage Victoria stepped in to scuttle plans to make the tower compliant with fashionable security requirements the council compromised by constructing a one and three-metre diving boards subsequent to it so the plunge pool might nonetheless be used.
Dean Hurlston, from Ratepayers Victoria, condemned the waste.
‘The entire level of getting it’s as some form of trophy to the councillors who needed to revive it to allow them to stick a stunning plaque on it and say “Look what an amazing job we did”,’ he stated.
‘So, as an alternative they’ve spent more cash constructing a smaller one subsequent door so we will use that.
‘That is simply silly coverage and insanity.’
Mr Hurlston claimed the council additionally selected the most costly tender to ship the unusable tower.
The Harold Holt Swimming Centre in south east Melbourne has undergone as in depth restoration program
Stonnington Council responded that solely the most costly bid met the necessities.
‘Council ran an open public tender for the venture and acquired one conforming submission,’ a spokesperson stated.
‘Whereas various different submissions have been acquired they have been deemed non-conforming as they solely priced small parts of the venture and have been subsequently unsuitable to undertake the venture as entire.’
The council stated it was ‘clear’ the diving tower couldn’t be restored to a secure sufficient customary’
‘By means of the venture planning and neighborhood engagement course of Council thought of recommendation and suggestions nonetheless, it turned clear that whereas the tower was a lot beloved it couldn’t be restored to the required security customary,’ the spokesperson stated.
‘The one choice was to retain it as a nostalgic function to remind the neighborhood of the pool’s important heritage and place in historical past.’
Smaller diving boards have been positioned to subsequent to the tower to allow some use of the plunge pool
