It was a good day for an afternoon swim when the new Taieri Baths at Mosgiel were officially opened on Saturday December 4, 1937.
Entertainment for the opening included swimming and diving demonstrations by the Taieri Amateur Swimming Club.
The Evening Star reported about 40 swimmers from Dunedin also travelled to compete in various events, and the St Clair Surf Life Saving Club gave a demonstration of their skills that was enjoyed by the crowd of spectators.
The cost of the pool was £2660 (about $315,000 in today’s figures) with funding supplied by the Government and the Mosgiel Borough Council as well as about £222 of donations collected by the Taieri Amateur Swimming Club.
Now after 85 years the old pool will be demolished next week to make way for a car park alongside the new Mosgiel Pool.
Dunedin City Council parks and recreation group manager Scott MacLean said since construction of the new pool began a year ago, the old pool had been used to store materials and provide a workshop to prepare roof beams before installation as well as facilities for the construction workers on site.
The old pool will take about seven days to be demolished, and salvageable material such as steel and concrete will be recycled, with other concrete broken up and reused as fill.
