Preparations for new Fremantle Leisure Centre roof to start Monday

The indoor 25 metre and leisure pools at the Fremantle Leisure Centre will close on Monday to prepare for the installation of their new roof.

The pavilion structure over the 25m and family leisure pools was constructed in 1996.

In October last year the lightweight polycarbonate roof covering the pavilion had to be removed due to storm damage. Since then, the pools have continued to operate without the roof.

The indoor pools will close on Monday so they can be emptied ahead of construction of the new roof starting on 12 September.

The leisure centre’s outdoor 50m pool, program pool, gymnasium and change rooms will all remain open throughout the project.

Leisure centre Manager Adam Westberg said the aim was to have the indoor pools open again by Christmas.

“The first phase of putting on the new roof will be cleaning, sandblasting and repainting the existing steel pavilion structure,” Mr Westberg said.

“The next step will be to install the roof sheeting, which will be thermally insulated roof panels rather than the previous lightweight polycarbonate sheeting.

“The new roof panels will mean it will be warmer in winter and provide UV protection in summer. They’ll also be more robust and last longer.

“We’ll also be installing new café blinds along the sides of the pavilion, and upgrading the lighting and electrics.

“While the pools are closed we’ll take advantage of the opportunity to do some maintenance on the plant room and give them a good scrub before reopening in December.”

Mr Westberg said every effort would be made to minimise the disruption to leisure centre patrons while the indoor pools were closed.

“Our Learn to Swim programs held in the 25m pool will finish three weeks early this term and resume after the school holidays in the outdoor 50m pool,” he said.

“With our four swimming clubs we’ve been able to rearrange their schedules to fit them all into the 50m pool.

“At certain times during the week the space available for lap and recreational swimmers will be reduced to just two lanes in 50m pool.

“While there will always be lanes available it’s likely they’ll be busier than normal. If it’s possible for people to choose to swim in off peak times – between 7.30am–3.30pm or after 6.30pm on weekdays – that would help to spread the load.

“We’ll also be keeping the pool open until 8pm Monday to Friday. Swimmers can check our website for lane availability to pick the best times.”

Should they wish to, leisure centre members will be able to suspend their memberships during the construction of the new roof.

For information about lane availability and weekly project updates please go to fremantle.wa.gov.au/roof-works-updates.