The Waipapa Papanui-Innes-Central Community Board has approved a grant of $41,000 from the Government’s ‘Better Off’ funding.
The grant will go to St Albans Pavilion and Pool Incorporated towards the compliance, planning and contract costs associated with the construction of the pool.
It is hoped construction on the former pool site on Edgeware Rd will start in October.
“We are so pleased and grateful to get this grant as it completes a cycle of fundraising and we can now proceed with planning and finalise drawings of the pool. If it all goes to plan, shovels will be ready to go this year.”
While SAPP has already obtained resource consent from the city council to build the pool, it needed to lodge an application with Environment Canterbury, to comply with Land Water Regional Plan legislative changes, which it did on Friday.
“We are hoping to put the building consent to the city council in the coming weeks/months,” O’Keefe said.
So far, $3.45 million has been raised for the rebuilding of the pool, but this funding has been held for the actual construction, O’Keefe said.
The city council provided a grant of $3 million and a further $300,000 has been secured from the Lotteries Grants Board.
The pool was built and run by the St Albans community in 1934, but during the early 2000s, the city council took over ownership and in 2006, closed and demolished the pool.
O’Keefe said there were outcries from the residents at the time, as they didn’t want to lose it.
“We want to provide children easy access to water and build a facility that will strengthen the well-being of our community by providing a space which meets family, cultural, recreational and social needs.
“The community board has always been supportive of the project. There was some opposition to the grant but it was approved by a vote of seven to two.
“I think the opposition was because they wanted to know we could achieve the requirements and we have mostly.”
O’Keefe, who lives in Edgeware and about 300m from the pool sitesaid she is looking forward to walking to the pool with her towel over her shoulder.
