The Mission Beach aquatic centre has been 20 years in the making. A lot of people were part of this public pool happening for the Mission Beach community and it is their hard work that made this pool being built at MARCS park.
Over 20 years, MBARC raised funds and conducted essential studies plus produced a community video to make their case for government funding. The community’s contributions to the project over 20 years were worth more than $124,000. Not too bad for a town of only 3,800 residents.
MBARC’s people worked in close harmony with CCRC staff to ensure the funding case was compelling and ended up winning $3.49 million National Stronger Regions funding from federal government with a matching grant from the state government’s Building our Regions fund.
The trio who started it all were Maureen Norris (now Scott and living in USA), Coralie Kemp (now at Bribie Island) and Paul Roxby, back in Bingil Bay. The management committee now includes 29 residents from diverse backgrounds, all contributing in their own unique way. The key steps in this 20-year journey were to raise seeding funds for the studies needed to apply for government funding, to conduct the essential research which they mostly did themselves, to ensure the facility was designed to meet the needs of most people in the town then to find a way to win the funding to build it.
With their relentless effort and energy, the dream came true and the facility is well on the way to being built.
It all started way back in the 1970’s when a group known as the “Progressive Society” tried to get it a pool for Mission Beach but that folded a year on. After a few more failed attempts, MBARC was formed in 2000 and from there on the community never gave up. It all came together in 2008 when the Councils amalgamated and CCRC was formed so Mission Beach was no longer caught between two Councils with differing visions.
In the early years, Council studies showed clearly that the priority for sports and recreation facilities in the region was a pool at Mission Beach. Yet with the Council boundary splitting Mission Beach in two neither Council wanted to commit.
The community asked what it could do to help. Councils said if we did a Needs Analysis they would then progress it. Our members raised funds and won a grant for the study. But when we presented the news that over 90% of residents wanted a pool Council’s stalled, saying we must next do a Feasibility Study. Our quotes for that were up to $60,000. It was done.
So began the game of Snakes and Ladders that go on until 2012 when the new amalgamated Council started listening. From then on, Council and Mission Aquatic worked closely together to do all the work required to win the funding and ensure the facility was designed to be viable and used by a wide range of residents and visitors.
In 2005, Mission Aquatic paid for the first concept designs and these included a lap pool, leisure pool and tots pool so the concept was similar to today’s design. The cost of that were estimated at near $7M in 2017 dollars so that has not changed.
Our community research, as expected, showed that different people wanted different things. Some wanted a lagoon on the beach but that was way out of our league. The Cairns lagoon costs up to $2M a year to run and was $42M to build in 2016 dollars. Some wanted an ocean rock pool but no State government would touch that. Some wanted a 50M lap pool like Cardwell but those cost three times as much as a 25M pool to build and run so if we did that we would have no funds for a leisure pool for young children and families or a program pool for learn to swim and hydrotherapy.
To meet the needs of a wide most residents and visitors it was clear that a modest combination pool was the go. Council appointed a Community Reference Group (CRG) inviting 11 organisations and interest groups to help achieve the optimum design based on researched community preferences. Now the new plans are complete and nine (9) of the 11 groups on the CRG are right behind the proposal at MARCS. This has been supported in every one of seven Council votes since 2004.
Now that everything is decided, have we made the right choice? All the data shows this to be the best option available.
Some say we are building it before we have all the plans and studies or the financials may not add up. Fact is most aquatic facilities built merely require four studies: this project has had 25! Financials were tested six times by different qualified practitioners and each time the results were similar. Fortunately, the two government funding panels agreed with Council’s studies when they chose it above hundreds of others. Their decisions were based on finance and economic criteria.
Some suggest it’s “huge” or way over the top yet comparisons show this is indeed a modest, value for money outcome.
When we won funds so too did Blackwater, a QLD town near identical in resident-tourist population to ours and in a region (Central Highlands) with a population very similar to our region. Their facility is costing $14.8M to build. They pay $8.6M of that from ratepayer funds. That one is similar to Innisfail’s facility. And pools can cost far more eg Cairns Tobruk was $25M.
A comparison with Cardwell helps. That is a 50 metre pool. Pool running costs are largely determined by the number of staff needed and volume of water to treat. Cardwell’s pool has a slightly higher water volume than the entire MB aquatic facility. Staff levels are similar. The cost of depreciation will be higher for a new facility but that money is not lost – it is merely spent replacing old assets. On the revenue side a modern, well designed combination pool will certainly get more use than a lap pool alone. Mission beach has a 2011 census population over 3,500, Cardwell has under 1,200. The higher population adds revenue. So common sense analysis shows this pool will cost Council no more to run than Cardwell’s.
It is very rare these days that a Council will win more than 50% of the funds needed to construct an aquatic facility or any infrastructure and on this rare occasion because Council officers did their homework so well and worked hard with the community together we nailed the funding criteria and won 100% funding. That saved ratepayers $3.5 million which was planned to be paid for by a Council loan. If we had done what Blackwater did and built a pool like the Innisfail one, then we would now be looking down the barrel and paying off an $8.6M loan. So this is good news for ratepayers across the region.
20 YEAR Timeline
1997
Council sports & recreation study finds an aquatic facility is the number 1 sports & rec priority for the town.
1999
Region Facilities Study. Mission Beach had strong feelings of inequity and the top priority was: aquatic facility.
2000
Maureen Norris (Scott) calls first public meeting. Aim is to build a pool for Mission Beach.
2001
MBARC incorporate and raise funds for studies needed to make the case. A Needs Analysis is completed finding over 90% of residents want a pool. Consultants find MARCS to be the only suitable site.
2003
1st Feasibility Study shows the project will be financially viable if the facility is built to meet both sport and recreation needs and is designed for all age groups. Beachside lagoons and Olympic pools were not viable.
2004
Site & Facility Preferences Study: MARCS was voted best site. Most residents wanted lap and leisure pools. Well over 90% of residents support a pool facility. Councils decide to use MARCS as preferred site.
2005
Community Workshop finds MARCS and Rotary Park equal best sites; engineers eliminate near school site. 3rd Community Survey finds MARCS slightly more popular then Rotary Park. 1st Concept Plan done at MARCS.
2006
2nd Feasibility Study finds the viable option is multiple pools (lap, leisure & program) suiting all age groups.
2007
Tourism Study by Cummings Economics shows the main roadblock for tourism is lack of facilities and the priority to attract and retain tourists in Mission Beach is aquatic facilities.
2008
CCRC reviews our case but faces a huge challenge to renew Innisfail’s basic infrastructure so delays the pool project.
2009
2nd Concept Plan and 3rd Feasibility Study finding (again) project is financially viable in the proposed format.
MBARC completes Statewide Council Aquatic Infrastructure Study and Marine Stinger Study.
2010
4th Community Study confirms facility preferences. Council agrees to a Community Reference Group (CRG) involving 11 key community organizations and interest groups to provide input to design. CCRC vote to seek funding for project at MARCS. Business Plan done and this confirms that the project is financially viable.
2011
3rd Concept Plan completed. CCRC obtains planning approval for MARCs site.
2012
Study of lagoon costs shows again this option is beyond our means. MBBT (Tourism and Business) votes and agrees to support MARCS “rainforest billabong”.
2013
MBARC surveys more site options and finds MARCS is still the preferred option.
2014
Site costing and soil study confirms MARCS is a good site. MBARC committee, CRG and Council all unanimously vote for design and site (MARCS). CCRC does 4th design and completes design documentation. Evidence-based site comparison study shows MARCS site is far superior to two beachside sites evaluated.
2015
Sites are debated with wide community input …. Council again votes for MARCS.
Community video (A Pool to be Cool) produced to demonstrate need and assist with funding applications.
Management & Operations Plan shows (for the 5th time) that the project is financially viable.
Council works with the community and applies for funding from State and Commonwealth.
Council wins $3.49M National Stronger Regions Funding from Commonwealth Government.
Council wins $3.49M Building our Regions funding from the State Government.
2016
MARCS site confirmed by newly elected Council – project to continue as contractually agreed with funding bodies.
CCRC consults MARCS user groups and Reference Group then does a study of factors that make pools successful. CCRC uses this input, revises the design and releases the final design version to the community.
2017
It’s built!
More information and pool updates can be found on the Mission Beach Pool Facebook page
Mission Beach News would like to thank Ken Gray for his work with the pool and for supplying the information in this story.
