Recreation and Aquatic Facility

The prospect of an aquatic facility within the City of South Perth has been under consideration for some years, with a number of studies, reports and submissions prepared and received. One of the key strategies in the City’s Strategic Community Plan 2017-2027 is to: plan for and promote the development of recreation and aquatic facilities to service community needs. In light of this previous work and a desire to develop a functional and financially viable facility, the City has initiated the Recreational and Aquatic Facility (RAF) feasibility study.

The City has identified a gap in the recreational facilities available to the community in relation to the population, the size of which warrants a regional multipurpose sports and leisure facility based on Peak industry sporting body, Parks and Leisure Australia (PLA) guidelines.

An assessment undertaken in 2015 indicated that a conventional swimming pool, while publicly supported, would require substantial ongoing financial subsidy to meet operational costs.

The opportunity to integrate a number of sporting and recreation facilities into a single integrated venue will provide economies of scale in services provision, capital cost and ongoing operational costs.

For the project to progress, funding partners need to be identified. Federal financial support will also be sought in the lead up to the upcoming elections and additional partnership opportunities will be investigated. A range of key stakeholders will be engaged to determine the level of support and to ensure that the RAF will be a financially sustainable consideration both now and into the future.

Part of the study will involve engagement with external organisations within and adjacent to the City, including Curtin University, to explore partnership opportunities.

At the 2018 October Council meeting, the Council resolved to support further project research, start formal stakeholder engagement and commit to consultation with the community. It is anticipated that this will take place in early 2019.

Further details about the project can be found on the City's website.