Work on the final stages of the $21.4 million Aquarena Aquatic and Leisure Centre in Lower Templestowe is complete and the community is invited to come and see the outstanding facility for themselves.

Manningham Mayor Cr Paul McLeish said that after almost seven years of construction the facility has been totally redeveloped into an outstanding world class recreational facility.

“The new look Aquarena is really something to see and a far cry from its humble beginnings as the local municipal swimming pool of the late 1960s.”

“The Manningham community now has access to a diverse range of outstanding new health, fitness and aquatic facilities providing services and equipment to meet the health and fitness needs of all members of the community well into the future.”

Cr McLeish said this redevelopment is one of the biggest capital projects Council has undertaken and the outstanding facility we now have, is the result of a lot of hard work by many and the strong commitment of successive Councils.

“People, within Council, the community and Manningham YMCA, have been involved in this project over many years and it is wonderful to see how their hard work and dedication has been realised in this stunning facility.”

“I would like to thank the local community, Aquarena members and all the visitors to the facility for their patience during the many stages of construction.”

“Your loyalty has been unwavering and now you have access to one of the best recreational facilities in Australia. Something we can all be very proud of.”

“I would urge everyone to bring their family and friends along to the Community Open Day on Saturday 30 July, to see how Aquarena has been transformed,” Cr McLeish said.

As background

Stages one to 3 and 3a included the construction of:

• New school change rooms, first aid room and offices;
• Refurbishment of the existing "wet" change rooms;
• Construction of the new swim club rooms including additional dry program space;
• Installation of a new waterslide
• Refurbishment of the existing waterslide and outdoor diving pool and the construction of a new plant room and associated equipment including the installation of a cogeneration system.

Stages 4, 5 and 6 included:

• Construction of a new indoor Warm Water Program Pool and pool hall including new steam room and spa -
• Construction of a new outdoor Water Splash and Play area, located between the existing indoor pool hall and the new outdoor plant room
• Construction of a new Wellness Centre providing opportunities for consulting suites for allied health services
• Expansion and relocation of the gymnasium - the relocation from the ground floor to the first floor will see the gymnasium facilities at Aquarena doubling in size.
• Extensive redevelopment of the Entrance Foyer, Administration Zone, and Reception Area.
• Modification works to the existing crèche area
• Expansion and refurbishment of the existing dry change rooms
• Redevelopment of the external drop off and pick up zones, including the establishment of a new forecourt to provide a more accessible vehicle access zone that will incorporating Accessible Car Parking spaces, Permit Zone Bays, a dedicated Taxi Zone and bicycle parking zones
• Construction of a Sky Bridge linking visitors from the upper car park levels to the facility.

The Aquarena redevelopment been predominately funded by Manningham Council, with a $2.5million grant from Sport and Recreation Victoria and contributions from Manningham YMCA ($150,000), Doncaster Swimming Club ($100,000) and a State Government grant of $140,000 for the redevelopment of the taxi rank area.