Work starts on Cleveland Aquatic Centre upgrade

Work has started on a staged $416,000 upgrade of the Cleveland Aquatic Centre.

Redland City Mayor Karen Williams said the initial works – the refurbishment of the male and female change rooms and amenities – were expected to be completed in about five weeks, weather permitting.

“Council is committed to retaining the Cleveland Aquatic Centre as a provider of aquatic facilities and programs for the Redlands Coast community,” Cr Williams said.

“This includes a continued investment of funding to keep the facility operational until such time as it needs to be replaced.

“Council has conducted annual condition assessments of the centre since 2020 and, following the most recent assessment, has developed a schedule of works to be completed over the next eight months.

“The timeline for these works may be a bit longer than anticipated due to the need to source specialist contractors.

“We also want to minimise the impact on the community so are scheduling major works outside the peak school holiday periods.”

Refurbishment of the male change rooms and amenities will start today and, once complete, refurbishment of the female change rooms is expected to start on 9 November 2023.

The upgrade will include repainting the change room walls, replacing flooring materials, and installing new toilets, partitions, handbasins and showers. These works are expected to be completed by the end of November.

Portable change rooms and toilets will be on site for use by patrons while the works are underway.

Division 2 Councillor Peter Mitchell said Council was also sourcing quotes for other infrastructure upgrades and routine maintenance works at the aquatic centre.

“The next stage of the refurbishment will include repainting of the building exteriors and concrete paths and the replacement of sections of perimeter fencing,” Cr Mitchell said.

“There will also be routine maintenance carried out on the pool pumps and filters and these works are scheduled to be completed before the school holidays start in December, weather permitting and pending contractor availability.”

The final stage of the budgeted aquatic centre refurbishment is proposed to start in April 2024, pending contractor availability.

This will include restoration of the 20 metre and 25 metre pool surfaces and surrounds, repairs to the outdoor river pool and children’s play pool.

Cr Williams said the latest condition assessment recommended a master plan be prepared for the replacement of the pools and site redevelopment over several stages within the next eight to 10 years.

“The master planning process is expected to start in 2028/29 to ensure the facility’s redevelopment continues to meet the needs of the community,” she said.