The North Bellarine Aquatic Centre, a $15.5 M heated 50M outdoor facility was opened in November 2023 after a lengthy public and political campaign. This centre was promised to be an all-year-round facility for the local residents of Drysdale & surrounds.However, the City of Greater Geelong plans to close this pool at the end of March 2024 and will not open again until Novemebr 2024.This means that our brand new local pool will be closed for more months than it's open! - a decision that contradicts its original promise and restricts access to this vital community resource.Stage 1 of this plan should be to stay open until Stage 2 (25M indoor pool,gym,kiosk etc) is completed. Regular swimming has been proven to have numerous health benefits including cardiovascular fitness and muscle strength enhancement & also improves social connection and mental well being. By limiting access to this facility we are potentially hindering our community's health & well being.We are also contributing to green house gases by driving further to use other facilities over the colder months.

The council's budget proposal for 2026 states "A healthy community is one where everyone has the opportunity to experience the best health & well-being".The Council needs to extend the months that this fantastic facility is  open until the end of May 2024 & open again at the start of October 2024. The opening hours of the pool also need to extend and be in line with other pool facilities in the region-Open 530am,close 8pm especially over the Summer Months.

Given that the drowning numbers of Victorians are at a record high in Victoria this Summer (in fact 7 more than the 5 year average) I urge you to sign this petition.