Tamworth Regional Council prioritises $67m aquatic centre before shovels hit ground on Kable Avenue 'Adventure Pool'

With the future of Tamworth's aquatics relying on a steady stream of government cash, and a lagoon-style pool dubbed "inadequate" for lap swimming, a contingency plan is in place to keep competitive swimmers in the pool.

Tamworth Regional Council mayor Russell Webb said the organisation has homed in on getting a new, $67 million indoor aquatics centre "up and running" before the gates are closed on any other lap pools.

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"Our plan is that we need to get moving on the aquatics centre," he said.

"We need to get that up and running before we close the town pool."

Council's 'Bicentennial Park Masterplan', which was adopted in 2020, states the city pool will continue to be maintained as a "functional community asset" until "if or when" the proposed aquatics centre is built.

After that, the pool is scheduled to be closed, knocked down, and transformed into a $12 million 'Adventure Pool'.

Tamworth Regional Council's general manager Paul Bennett told the Leader council will also retain the Scully Park pool in the city's West, while a new indoor aquatics precinct is built near the Sports Dome.

"That would then allow us to transition away from the current city pool [Kable Avenue] towards the 'Adventure Pool'," he said.

The general manager said councillors had made it clear the 'Adventure Pool' could not come before the aquatics centre.

Council has already secured $15 million from the state government to go towards the new indoor centre.

Manager of regional services Peter Resch said council would apply for another $15 million from the federal government, and council would pitch in the same amount.

It's anticipated the leisure centre will be a staged development, with $45 million set aside for phase one, which will include everything except the outdoor lap pool.

Plans to get the lagoon-style pool "shovel ready" are also making waves, after council allocated $100,000 towards preliminary designs and approval processes.

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