Gunnedah pool swim lanes to be increased

Gunnedah Memorial Pool’s dedicated swimming lanes for club use will increase from three to four under a new agreement proposed last week.

The new deal would see Swimming Gunnedah occupy three lanes for training activities and the Gunnedah Triathlon Club, one.

The matter was raised in last week’s Gunnnedah Shire Council meeting by deputy mayor Kate McGrath.

The councillor also requested Swimming Gunnedah retain use of the Dan Killick room inside the indoor pool facility as a storage area and a fee waiver for the full amount of line hire charges.

After some negotiation, it was agreed that a fee waiver of $1000 per annum of total costs be offered to Swimming Gunnedah.

Councillors also agreed that the arrangement be for a period of three years and reviewed annually, after an initial public exhibition period of 28 days.

Swimming Gunnedah president Louise Whitton said the reintroduction of the additional swimming lane – which she said was removed by council in October without prior consultation – would help facilitate ongoing training activities such as its regular ‘Club Night’.

She said the swim club enjoys a working relationship with Gunnedah schools for swimming carnivals and has “always” co-existed other groups such as the triathlon club.

“Our coach encourages our swimmers to be a part of other clubs and sports,” Ms Whitton said.

“In the past there have been no issues with sharing resources for all clubs.

“We have no concern with the triathlon club, we just want our lane back,” she added prior to the decision by council to introduce the fourth swimming lane.

Although not explicitly stated in the council decision, both parties understood the four-lane arrangement would apply to both the outdoor and indoor pool at Gunnedah.

According to Gunnedah Shire Council’s March business paper, a maximum of three pool lanes were previously allocated for exclusive use in either pool at any time. It stated this was the maximum number of lanes that could be allocated without having an adverse impact on other users, including the general public.

Last weekend an additional lane was also in place at the outdoor pool, this meant five of the eight lanes were occupied for lap swimming.

Councillor McGrath said it’s a “good thing” that a rural community like Gunnedah has so many competitors that it must find space to accommodate them all at the pool.

The motion was passed by six of the nine councillors – three voted against including Cr Rob Hooke, Robert Hoddle and Ann Luke.

Council’s business paper also noted a service review on the Gunnedah Memorial Aquatic Complex was expected to be complete to be within the next few weeks.

The review will cover a range of considerations with a key objective being that council is seeking to achieve $930,000 in cost savings and efficiency gains over the next three years.

This was introduced in response to council’s proposed 37.67 per cent rate increase to be implemented over two years which is currently undergoing consultation with the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal.