A delay in building consent is the latest twist in the long-running Edgeware Pool saga.
Building consent was lodged with Christchurch City Council in October by the group behind the new pool.
Now she says this does not appear to be the case.
Building consent is “on hold” while the council awaits four Request for Information responses, city council acting head of building consenting Sanjay Dutt said.
“Once the required information has been provided and adequately addresses the RFI, the consent process resumes and progresses accordingly.”
A Request for Information is a formal part of the building consent process, issued when additional details or clarification are required to ensure compliance with the Building Code and other requirements.
The RFIs comprise legal description updates, water supply, and wastewater capacity.
The RFIs also comprise stormwater design, drainage and plumbing, and trade-waste requirements.
O’Keefe said she was aware of the RFIs.
“It has been tit for tat, there’s been ongoing communications between council and our architect and engineering teams – once they’re back at work over the next week, we will start progressing again.”
O’Keefe said they were acutely aware of the weather and the higher water table in St Albans, which meant building in the drier months was preferable.
“We’re probably looking at February/March,” she said.
“We definitely want to be digging in the ground before winter.”
The journey to get to this point has been nearly two decades.
In 2007, the city council demolished the 70-year-old Edgeware Pool – despite passionate opposition from the local community – due to the pool’s deteriorating condition, which sparked protests between pool advocates and then-mayor Garry Moore.
The city council sold the land to the St Albans Pavilion and Pool Inc for $1 in 2016.
There was still a mix of relief and excitement despite the delays.
“It’s fantastic to see it coming to fruition,” O’Keefe said.
The group has raised $3.5 million for the facility with “incredible support” from private donors, she said.
“They are all locals and they have memories of swimming there.”
The pool will also help children with their swimming, she said.
“We’ve missed a whole generation, children need an easy accessible place to swim to gain confidence in the water.”
The new facility will include a 25m pool, a learners pool, a splash pool for toddlers, a pavilion, and a grass area for picnics.
