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Thursday 15 November 2012

Community invited to celebrate New Brighton Whale Pool re-opening

A special event to celebrate the re-opening of a Christchurch landmark, the New Brighton Whale Paddling Pool, is to be held this weekend.

Mayor Bob Parker will officially re-open the New Brighton Whale Pool on the New Brighton foreshore at 11.30am this Saturday, 17 November. It will be the first time the paddling pool has been open since the February 2011 earthquake.

At the re-opening there will be children's entertainment on offer, including face painting, the Carrot and Pickle Clown Show and some water-inspired games. To mark the occasion, the New Brighton Community Market, which will be held in the New Brighton Pedestrian Mall from 10am to 2pm, will be re-named 'Whale of a time' on Saturday and will sell whale paraphernalia.

Another three newly repaired paddling pools - the Christchurch Botanic Gardens Paddling Pool, Abberley Park Paddling Pool in St Albans and Woodham Park Paddling Pool in Linwood - will also open this weekend in time for families to enjoy this summer.

Mayor Parker says the Whale Pool has been a familiar sight on the New Brighton foreshore for as long as many Christchurch residents can remember. Its re-opening is a small, but significant, step in the city's recovery.

"The Whale Pool has always been a popular spot for Christchurch families during summer and many residents have fond memories of their children splashing around in the pool during the warmer weather.

"With many of the city's paddling pools closed last summer due to earthquake damage, there's no doubt that many people in Christchurch will welcome the return not only of the Whale Pool, but also the other paddling pools, which are also treasured community facilities."

All the pools that are opening, except the Botanic Gardens Paddling Pool, were closed last summer after they were damaged during the February 2011 earthquake. The Botanic Gardens Paddling Pool was open last summer, but part of it was closed following the 23 December 2011 earthquake. Work carried out on the pools has included repairing broken pipes and concrete repairs. While the work being carried out to the Botanic Gardens Paddling Pool will allow it to re-open in time for summer, further repair work will be needed after the summer ends.

Two of the four pools that were repaired - the New Brighton Whale Pool and Christchurch Botanic Gardens Paddling Pool - are part of the top 30 facilities that, in September, the Council agreed should be prioritised for funding, further investigations and, where possible, repairs.

The development of repair options and potential costs for Scarborough Paddling Pool is continuing. The pool, which is the third paddling pool on the Council's top 30 list, is more seriously damaged than the four that have been repaired. It will not re-open in time for the 2012/13 season.

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