By KATH GANNAWAY
A NEW indoor pool for Marysville is not a viable option according to Murrindindi Council and the State Government.
There were calls last week from some Marysville residents for interest from Bushfire Appeal Fund monies to be used to build a new heated pool following the demolition of a privately-owned indoor pool to which community members had access.
The pool that was originally part of the Cumberland Hotel complex was all that was left standing on the site after Black Saturday. The pool was re-opened after the fires by the YMCA but closed in December last year after plans for the new conference and hotel development were released.
A campaign to retain the pool for community use was cut short when the pool was demolished, angering those residents who had hoped to save it.
A spokesman for Deputy Premier and Minster for Regional and Rural Development Peter Ryan and Murrindindi Council mayor John Walsh say however that access to the pool was always a two-year arrangement.
“We were fully aware, as were the community, that the privately owned pool would only be available for public use until such time as a developer for the site had been identified,” Cr Walsh said.
He said the council could not afford to operate an additional pool and were grateful to the YMCA and the State Government for keeping the pool open after the fires and welcomed the investment made by the government and Toga Hospitality Group in building the Vibe Hotel and Conference Centre in Marysville.
The RRD spokesman said the government invested $19 million in the $28 million project which would create jobs and inject millions into the local economy each year.
He said keeping the pool open post-fires had been heavily subsidised with the government understanding of the costs running at $18,000 a month.
“This money came from charitable donations, and neither charities nor local council are prepared to continue paying for the pool,” he said.
In relation to a call for funding for a new pool, he said the VBAF money was independent of government and that funding for community recovery was determined following extensive community consultation and nominations of key projects – with no nominations for an indoor pool as a key project.
