‘Pool deserts’: The Sydney suburb where residents wait up to seven years for a swim
A Herald analysis of Sydney’s 76 public pools found it will cost $531 million to rebuild ten aquatic centres which have closed for redevelopment.
For example, Hills Shire suburbs such as Baulkham Hills and Cherrybrook rank among the highest in Sydney for private pool ownership, but the only public pool is the Waves Fitness & Aquatic Centre, shared between the local government area’s 222,675 residents.
Nearby pools are a 20- to 25-minute drive away in Blacktown and Epping, but both have been closed for redevelopment. In Ryde and Parramatta councils, there is about one pool per 140,000 residents.
In contrast, many inner-city and coastal local government areas are well serviced: the City of Sydney operates six pools from 6am to 8pm year-round, while the Inner West Council has four aquatic centres. And while councils such as Randwick, Waverley, Hunters Hill and Woollahra do not operate any aquatic centres, they have ocean pools and several beaches.
Apart from being scarcer, more pools in Sydney’s outer suburbs tend to close for the winter months, or have shorter operating hours. Cumberland, Fairfield and Blacktown all lose a pool each in winter to seasonal closures. Wollondilly’s public pool is only open between October and March.
