The hole in the Austinmer rock pool floor has finally been plugged.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The repair sees an end to a four-year saga for Wollongong City Council.
The scheduled work, with the exception of the handrail installation, was completed on December 12 with a final concrete pour at the rear of the southern pool to fill the hole.
A council spokeswoman said the project had been “challenging” for many reasons.
“The fact that this pool is the lowest-lying of all our rock pools has meant it’s more susceptible than all our other rock pools in regard to changing sea conditions, namely the tides, seas and swell,” she said.
“However, we know the community values its rock pools and our persistence has meant we’ve been able to complete this project.”
For the majority of the refurbishment works, both rock pools at Austinmer have remained open. Most recently, the council had to close the southern pool from time to time for the safety of the swimmers.
Austinmer resident Janet Webster swims in the rock pools most days throughout the year and enjoyed the exercise and socialising.
“When one pool has been closed it has been an inconvenience but most of the time the other has been open and I sometimes went to the ocean pools in at Thirroul and Coledale beaches,” she said.
“We are lucky to have the ocean pools and I am glad the Austinmer one has been repaired.
“Swimming in the ocean is not always safe so it is good to have an alternative. I feel the pools are good for the spirit and much better than the chlorinated public pools.
“Council has done an excellent job of repairing them and they are really valued by the community.”
Appin resident Con Lambrou said there was nothing like swimming in the ocean pools.
“A few times a week I will swim in different pools,” he said. “They are lovely.”
Mr Lambrou said he was inconvenienced when repair work was being carried out Austinmer but it helped him discover other pools along the coast.
He said it was good the council had repaired and maintained the pools.
A council spokeswoman said the handrail would likely be installed next year and scheduled maintenance on the pool’s intake valve would be undertaken early next year.
The repair project has cost the council $1.7 million and it has been plagued by problems since it began in 2014.
Six months in, Specialised Marine Services – which said it could complete the job for $499,000 – went into voluntary liquidation and left the works in disarray.
The council temporarily secured the site so the pool could be used over summer, then appointed local firm Affective Services to resume work.
However, with tides and rain dictating the work schedule, work on the project has been “intermittent” and “complex”.
Work on the northern pool – with the exception of a handrail – was finished by the end of 2015, but works to the southern pool remain incomplete.
By April this year, the project had run almost $1 million over budget, and the council said it hoped to finish repairs by June and there were further delays in August.
The council spokeswoman said the project had been a learning curve and the council had developed new methods to respond to the sea-side conditions.
“The use of pre-cast concrete panels, which was developed and trialled for the Austinmer project, was successful and then adopted as a methodology for the Blue Mile Tramway project and the recent refurbishment of Coalcliff and Wombarra Rock Pools,” she said.
“Wombarra rock pool is also due for completion before Christmas.
“We thank the community for their ongoing patience with the refurbishment of Austinmer’s rock pools which are part of a broader scope of works in this precinct.
“We’ve completed an upgrade to the playground area, footpaths and seating and the surf club building.
“Next autumn work will start on the refurbishment of the Austinmer amenities block."