By Ruza Zivkusic
SUNSHINE’S outdoor pool – empty for the past 14 years – may be about to get a new lease of life as Brimbank City Council last week voted to go ahead with the $9.5 million redevelopment of the Sunshine Swim and Leisure Centre.
The council also decided to lobby the State Government to cover the outdoor pool costs.
The decision, which was unanimous, was made last Thursday night and was greeted with applause from the crowded gallery despite the councillors ,who two days earlier during a council meeting agreed to pull the plug on the project because unions had put the work on hold as residents were manning a picket line.
Work on the project, which includes demolishing the outdoor pool, was halted because residents protested for more than a week at the site.
A call to the council from the Minister for Sport and Recreation, Justin Madden, saw the council reverse its decision to demolish the outdoor pool.
Mr Madden expressed his disappointment in a media release, saying the Bracks Government in 2004 committed $1.48 million in funding to ensure the future of the Sunshine Swim and Leisure Centre but said council had not “kept its promise”.
More than 200 pool supporters held a rally last Sunday to celebrate the saving of the pool. They called on the council to stick to its promise of supporting the second stage of the project by ensuring that the 50-metre pool was not demolished without a proper replacement plan, and to lobbying the State Government for funding.
