Durban - AMID complaints about eThekwini Municipality’s inability to run its own swimming pools, the city is now incorporating the Mount Edgecombe pool into the council assets register.
In a report, the city’s community and emergency services committee recommended that the parks, recreation and culture department take over the pool from July 1 next year.
The facility is in disrepair and the community wants it filled in.
When the Mount Edgecombe Golf Estate was developed, Tongaat Hulett Development built the pool and clubhouse on municipal land in 1995 and donated it to the former Tongaat Town Board (North Local Council).
The council leased it to the Mount Edgecombe Swimming Club, but the club has since dissolved and the pool has been closed for about five years.
The Concerned Residents of Mount Edgecombe said the pool was now a health hazard.
Resident Vegan Paul said it would be too costly to recommission it.
“The club that ran the pool abandoned it. It’s infested with snakes, rats and mosquitoes,” said Paul.
The acquisition of the facility would bring the number of swimming pools under eThekwini to 53.
Opposition parties had mixed reactions about the takeover.
Mdu Nkosi, IFP councillor in eThekwini, said: “If the developer is no longer interested in running the pool, then it’s beneficial for the city to expand its pool for the benefit of the many swimming clubs around the city.
“Some of the facilities are not properly maintained, so we need to start demanding accountability in the parks department.”
The DA did not support the move, saying that the municipality was not doing well managing and operating many of its swimming pools.
Nicole Graham, party caucus leader in eThekwïni, said: “Our key problem is that there are so many problems with swimming pools around the city. Rachel Finlayson has numerous problems, Kings Park has numerous problems.
“I can list pools all over the city that are in a complete state. Why is the city taking on additional facilities when it can’t manage the current capacity?
“We want to understand how the city plans to manage swimming pools better, before committing to more facilities.”
DA councillor Rory Macpherson said a public pool would be well suited in Cornubia to avoid children crossing the R102 to Mount Edgecombe.
He said they voted against spending on the rehabilitation of the pool.
In response, department head Thembinkosi Ngcobo said Cornubia had its own plan and budget, and it would be costly to decommission the Mount Edgecombe pool.
In October last year, the Daily News reported that Rachel Finlayson had been closed since its “rehabilitation” began in August 2015.
Many structural faults have been blamed for the prolonged closure and it has cost the taxpayer more than R10million so far.