Swimmers who visit the new Wellington Aquatic Leisure Centre will not have to pay any more than $2 to take a dip if Dubbo Regional Council mayor Ben Shields gets his way.
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To thank community members who waited years for the multi-million dollar centre to be built, Councillor Shields wants to slash pool prices.
At an extraordinary council meeting on Thursday Cr Shields will introduce a mayoral minute and ask councillors to endorse his plan ahead of the centre's official opening on Saturday.
"Locals had to go without a pool for the entire 2018/19 swim season as the redevelopment was carried out," Cr Shields says in a copy of the mayoral minute seen by the Daily Liberal.
"Then there were the problems discovered during construction, due to the extent of leaking from the old pool, which caused an unavoidable delay.
"To show council's appreciation for the community's understanding, I am proposing entry to the pool to be a gold coin entry from November 16 through to January 26."
Cr Shields estimates his plan will cost council about $30,000.
"I believe this small investment would be worth it to thank the people of Wellington for their patience while the Wellington Aquatic Leisure Centre was being redeveloped," he says.
"This promotion would allow council to showcase the new aquatic centre and give the entire community the chance to come and see everything their new pool has to offer.
"What the community now has is a state-of-the-art aquatic centre that will serve them for decades to come. It is superior to facilities at equivalent sized towns in regional NSW."
In the mayoral minute Cr Shields says also he wants a portion of the gold coin entry fee proceeds to go to charity.
Swimmers in Geurie and Dubbo will also not miss out on cheaper pool prices, with Cr Shields asking for "a number of" family fun days to be held at facility's in those locations throughout the swim season.
"These [family fun day's] are to be organised using a gold coin donation for entry and include inflatables, games and activites for patrons," he says.
The new Wellington Aquatic Leisure Centre has been largely funded by the NSW Government, as part of a spending program available to new councils who were created as a result of a merger between old councils.
The centre boasts a new eight-lane pool with access for swimmers with a disability, a heated exercise and learn to swim pool, splash pad and amenities.
