And then there were two
By Tim O?Connell
The fate of Petone?s McKenzie Pool could be decided by public voice, as planning for the upgrade gets whittled down to two options which are guaranteed to make a splash. Petone residents could well be taking a dip in one of the regions biggest aquatic complexes, should public consultation on the McKenzie Pool upgrade bring a positive response. However, the final decision may depend on how much Hutt City ratepayers are willing to spend. The Hutt City Council commissioned a report in 2006 to address several issues surrounding the 76-year-old pool, including hygiene and safety. In light of this, the HCC finance and audit committee developed the terms of reference for any development,which stipluted what would be required to bring the pool up to scratch. A draft report was submitted to the Council in December 2008 by Nelson- based consultant Dave Allan of Global Leisure Ltd, outlining the merits of any proposed revamp. Most recently, a meeting held a fortnight ago narrowed down the eight possible sites to just two- the current site in North Park or a massive new complex at the Hikoikoi Reserve. HCC?s Leisure Active Manager Marcus Sherwood said last week that the question of which option should be considered had been included in the councils draft annual plan, and would now be put up for public consultation in the next few weeks. ?There were a number of ideas suggested as to what should be done, and we?ve had a working group has been evaluating all possibilities for the pool,? he said. Perhaps the biggest issue to be considered is the massive difference in costs between the two alternatives. While $1.2 million has been earmarked for redeveloping the present McKenzie Pool site, the Petone Herald understands that the Hikoikoi complex will cost in excess of $6 million. Mr Sherwood said the HCC was always committed to keeping the facility in Petone, adding that all eight alternatives considered involved or were located within the general Petone area.
