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The revamped North Sydney Olympic Pool will be unveiled to the public in just over two months, more than five years after it closed for a $122 million upgrade that has been plagued by significant cost blowouts and delays.
Developer Icon has handed the keys to the finished pool to North Sydney Council after the project reached practical completion in the past week, paving the way for the historic complex to reopen on Friday, August 7.
By the time of the winter opening, swimmers will have endured 1986 days without the public swimming pool.
Mayor Zoe Baker told a council meeting on Monday the completion of construction was an important milestone in getting the pool ready to operate and returning it to the community – whom she thanked for their patience.
“We recognise the frustration many people have felt over the course of the redevelopment and, honestly, there were times I never thought we would see this day.
“But what now stands on this extraordinary harbour foreshore is a truly beautiful public facility that honours the history of the original pool while creating something future generations will enjoy for decades to come,” Baker said.
The renovation has become a lightning rod for debate about whether local governments should embark on such large infrastructure projects, as councils across Sydney upgrade ageing pools.
North Sydney Council staff are forging ahead with fit-outs, installing equipment and furnishings, recruiting and training staff, testing systems and technology, and completing heritage restoration works – including on the art deco brick wall facing the harbour.
The overhauled complex includes the 50-metre heated outdoor pool with views of the Harbour Bridge and Luna Park, a 25-metre indoor pool, program pool, 970-seat grandstand, and a children’s splash pad and water play area.
There is also a reformer Pilates studio, swim school, creche, spa, sauna, steam room, sundeck, Ripples cafe and gelato bar.
Casual entry to the pool will cost $11 per adult, $8.80 for children, and $8.25 for concession-holders.
Baker said the council would offer a series of guided tours for the public before the reopening.
“This is a facility built not just for today, but for future generations of swimmers, families, visitors and the wider community,” Baker said.
The pool closed for redevelopment on February 28, 2021. Work began that March, and it had been forecast to reopen in November 2022. The initial estimated cost was $58 million.
The council said in April there were $11.3 million of variation claims that were still to be agreed or submitted for the project. It said this figure was the amount claimed by Icon and “not the amount that will necessarily be agreed or paid by council”.
The reopening follows the 90th anniversary of the pool, which opened on April 4, 1936.
The pool hosted the 1938 British Empire Games and gained attention for the 86 world records set in its waters by swimming greats including John and Ilsa Konrads and Shane Gould.
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