Media report reveals rising costs and ongoing delays with redevelopments at Sydney aquatic centres

A weekend media report has revealed users of aquatic facilities across Sydney, including those with high Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CalD) communities, are set to be impacted by the closure of aquatic centres as a result of renovation projects.

As reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, the redevelopments - worth a combined projected cost of $160 million - are being approached against a backdrop of ongoing cost blowouts and delays with the upgrade project at the North Sydney Olympic Pool.

With ageing aquatic facilities reaching the end of their lifespan across the city, Leichhardt Park Aquatic Centre, Botany Aquatic Centre, the Mount Druitt Swimming Centre, Willoughby Leisure Centre and the Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool are each about to start, or are currently undergoing, redevelopment.

However, the delays and rising costs of the high profile North Sydney Olympic Pool, the reopening of which may be delayed until November, is causing concern that these other projects may deprive users of access to popular facilities.

Opened in 1960, Leichhardt Park Aquatic Centre is one of number of public pools from that era which have reached the end of their lifespan. Work has already started on building a new children’s pool and, next year, the Centre will close for construction of new 50m and 25m pools.

Inner West Council Mayor Darcy Byrne said, unlike North Sydney Council, the local government would not increase residents’ rates to help fund the $55 million project, telling the Sydney Morning Herald “there are a lot of pools coming to the end of their life cycle at the same time … (locals) understand if you don’t undertake the renovations and plan for it properly, what happens is what we’ve seen across other councils in Sydney - these things end up closing.”

Similarly, the Botany Aquatic Centre will close on 27th April for a $63 million renovation, including new 50m and 25m pools and a children’s play area with slides, and is expected to reopen for the 2027 swim season.

Bayside Mayor Ed McDougall explained that after nearly 60 years of use, essential pool infrastructure such as pumps and water filters are failing.

Blacktown City Council is set to close the Mount Druitt Swimming Centre next year for a $41 million renovation. The popular seasonal pool, which recently celebrated 50 years of operations, will be upgraded with the addition of a 25m indoor pool for year-round operations

Andrew (Boy) Charlton in The Domain remains closed after shutting in May 2024 for re-tiling and the installation of a new heating system. The pool is expected to reopen in September.

The Sydney Morning Herald also reported that Epping swimmers have been without their pool since last April, with uncertainty surrounding the $26 million renovation is up in the air after the City of Parramatta Council discovered estimated construction costs had blown out.

The Council is understood to be exploring reopening the Centre without the upgrades.

Willoughby Leisure Centre closed in 2022 for a planned $38 million revamp and was due to open in 2024, but the pool remains closed after the discovery of asbestos and the need for extra building materials caused cost blowouts and delays. Willoughby City Council's last update on the project - from March 2024 - advised that the "project is now expected to be completed in 2025".

Canterbury Leisure and Aquatic Centre is also closed for upgrades and is due to open next year.

Australasian Leisure Management reported on Sydney’s costly affair with extravagant aquatic centres in 2015, first raising concerns about rising costs of projects.

In March last year, Royal Life Saving Australia advised that almost seven out of 10 of Australia’s community swimming pools were aged over 50 years, and that $8 billion is needed to refurbish them.

While pool renovations can be costly and inconvenient, Royal Life Saving Australia Chief Executive Justin Scarr said councils needed to get these projects done to ensure access for the next 50 years, advising “tragically, the politics of the pool is really complex with many communities having diverse needs and noisy voices - that combined with the tragedy of North Sydney pool means that many councils really fear development and refurbishment.”

The closures coming across Sydney over the next year will leave some parts of Sydney with high migrant populations with no local pool, a matter of concern given that people who did not grow up in Australia and those from non-English-speaking backgrounds are among the groups considered most at-risk for drowning.

Images: Designs for the new outdoor pools at the Leichhardt Park Aquatic Centre (top), concept for upgrades to the Mount Druitt Swimming Centre (middle) and the planned Willoughby Leisure Centre (below).