Community invited to celebrate Whale Pool re-opening
< 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.
-ENDS-
Thursday 15 November 2012