Brisbane City Council reopens Centenary Pool after refurbishment

With Brisbane City Council reopening all of its 20 seasonal swimming pools for summer as of Saturday 20th September, most attention was focussed on the refurbished Centenary Pool at Spring Hill opened for the first time in over a year after a $5.3 million renovation.

The historic facility pool had been closed since July 2012 while Brisbane City Council undertook improvements including structural restoration and upgrade of the pool shells and concourse as well as upgraded filtration equipment and electrical services.

The facility's heritage listing ensured some of its most valuable features - such as the brick wall, exposed mortar and even the gardens have remained.

Managed by contractors BlueFit, the reopened facility is introducing the Rackley Swim Team, the first competitive swimming club based at the pool since 1999, while the famous dive tower wil host the Centenary Dive Academy - the fourth diving club in Brisbane and the only one on the city's northside.

BlueFit General Manager Jay Clarke, said the reopening heralded a new chapter for the pool, which opened in 1959 and was the leading aquatic centre until 1980.

Clarke told Brisbane newspaper The Courier Mail "this was the home of competitive swimming in Brisbane. It was the first 50 metre pool.

"Now we're regenerating that competitive swimming (focus)."

BlueFit General Manager Jay Clarke was interviewed about the reopening on 612 ABC Brisbane. The interview can be heard at http://blogs.abc.net.au/queensland/2013/09/centenary-pool-reopens-after-refurbishment.html

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