A new multi-pool facility located at Sports Park Motueka has been formally proposed through a submission to the Tasman District Council Long Term Plan.  Year round heated swimming will be available in a 25 m lane pool, an 8 m Therapeutic pool, a toddler’s pool and a spa Pool.  A step away from the original concept of enclosing the existing Motueka High School pool became necessary to meet funding requirements and has created the opportunity for a single new building and new pools.

Key major funders Rata Foundation and Lottery Commission advised that while they see the tremendous local support there needs to be demonstrative regional support and the only way to do this is through the TDC contributing.

This has meant a change in the pool site and design. Turning the existing Motueka High School pool into an indoor facility had been the focus.  School principal John Prestidge and his team helped draw up a Memorandum of Understanding and a lease agreement between Good Sports Motueka and the Ministry of Education.

Unfortunately, this lease cannot now be ratified as the TDC is unable to assist with funding for projects on non-TDC land.

We now plan to build a brand new pool complex on the adjacent Sports Park Motueka ground, which is a Council reserve. 

 "Our fundraising efforts came to a halt when the Virus arrived as did most other progress, but we've completed and submitted our request for regional funding to Tasman District Council’s Long Term plan," says the Motueka Community Pool Committee.

Now that we are at Alert Level 1 we have had a meeting with the Motueka Community Board members who have documented their support as an input to the LTP process. Motueka Ward Councilors continue to assist the project with advice and support.

As at June 2020 we have funds of $261,000 raised directly within the Motueka community. The Lions and Lioness Clubs are enthusiastic about these new developments and will be contributing $350,000 towards the therapeutic and spa pools.

 "We would like to thank everyone for their continued support. The pool fundraising group is feeling positive about the future and is very keen to see Motueka benefit from a facility such as the one we envisage."

Click here to read the entire submission.

The Motueka Community Swimming Pool committee has been fund raising through a host of activities, great support from other community groups, public donations, local businesses and the Lions and Lionesses will be funding the therapeutic pool.

Activities have included:

• Sausage sizzles - of course!
• Movies Opening Nights – thanks Motueka State Cinema
• Quiz nights – thanks Sprig and Fern
• Car Rallies
• High Street community shop
• Raffles
• Golf Tournament – thanks Motueka Golf Club
• Kai Fest
• Silent Auctions for great donated prizes
• Health Beauty and Fitness

There is now $212,000 on deposit with the bank and another $49,000 promised from local businesses to assist with construction. Major funders (Rata, Lotteries) have connected with our project. They understand the community need, appreciate the great local support but are looking for regional support before committing funds. We are talking with TDC on the form that this can take.

We have a Givealittle page or contact our Treasurer Sue email sueclark40@gmail.com or ph 027 544 3002. Good Sports Motueka is a registered Charity so all donations are eligible for a 33% tax rebate. In the mean time we continue sizzling sausages, BIG RAFFLE ticket sales, quiz and movie nights.

With this innovative project to use the existing Motueka High School Pool there are a number of key partnerships:

Motueka High School.
Motueka High School and the Board of Trustees have been very supportive in fostering the concept of a shared community pool. They will get an extended swimming season with the potential for more hours in the pool. Motueka High School is working with the Ministry of Education on the technicalities of administering this.

Wakatu Incorporation.
Wakatu are the owners of the land are keen to see a community facility on the land leased to the school.

Motueka and Districts Swimming Club.
The Swimming club are a key user of the pool through training sessions and ensuring the regular swimmers have good access.

Tasman District Council.
Tasman District Council are assisting with ensuring the projects financial plans are robust and working through how to contribute to the project and ongoing operations.

THE MOTUEKA COMMUNITY. We love the support from the locals!

An 8 m heated therapeutic pool will included in the main pool building. This will be at 28-32 °C. Lions and Lionesses have seen the need for a year-round heated therapeutic pool and have agreed to fund this as part of their centennial community projects.

Utilising modern insulated pool design and heat pump technology this will be a wonderful community asset and will be great for health and fitness activity across all age groups. The completed pools will be managed as one facility.

Community swimming pool facilities across the South Island have been visited, construction companies consulted and many ideas from around the world canvassed. Keeping it achievable and ensuring it is viable for our community have been key elements. 

Modern efficient heat pump technology will be utilised to heat the water and dehumidify/recover heat from the air. The roof design maximises the north facing area for photovoltaic electricity panels which will generate 1/3 of overall energy needs.

This will be a community swimming pool based at Sports Park Motueka. Having a new facility will allow community use across the whole day. This will include  lane swimming early in the morning and throughout the day and access to the therapeutic pool at prime times for the varied users and uses. Activities such as Aqua Aerobics would be introduced as community demand makes this viable.

Times for new sports to operate in the pools and the potential for specific events will be catered for.

Entry charges are intended to reflect a community pool rather than the high costs of urban aquatic centres. $6 for adults and $3 for children is intended for the main pool.

The Vision Motueka Development Trust conducted a month-long community consultation survey to gauge the views and aspirations of the Motueka community on how they can strengthen and grow their community.

The main measuring tool was a 45-item survey conducted both online and on the street, which asked respondents to rate the 45 suggestions for improvements on a zero to five scale (zero being definitely No and five being strongly Yes). 

One of those 45 items was: "Build a covered aquatic centre (swimming pool)". The survey (combined online and paper versions) was completed by 540 people, 96% of whom lived in Motueka or used Motueka as their hub for shopping and services. The statistical significance of the results are considered high. A rating of 0 meant they were against the proposal, and 5 meant strongly in favour. Respondents rated the question on the swimming pool thus:

In addition, the Motueka 2030 programme engaged with the online public through a dedicated Facebook Group page. One of the questions asked of the group was: "How would a year-round pool in Motueka benefit the community and/or you yourself?" Following is a sample of the 26 responses: 

"Yes, yes,  yes!! I've always been an advocate for getting a pool here, it would benefit all ages from babies through to the elderly. And even if you wouldn't use it yourself, I bet you know someone that would!! Being around so much water already I think the importance of teaching our kids to swim would be hugely beneficial and a year-round heated pool would be ideal. It's also the best kind of non-impact exercise you can do. Great for rehab from injury or operations and so much more! I'm all for the solar option too, use what nature provides this area in bucket loads!!" 

" Swimming is one of the most beneficial sports, for everyone! and an essential skill for EVERY child to have, a swimming pool in Motueka would help the people with physical and mental difficulties , would help the people wanting to get fitter, would connect and reconnect people etc... Considering that our outdoor swimming months are not so long, i find it of extreme importance. Would be great to have a close by place to prepare our little ones to brave the waves and rapids during summer. It could actually save lives." 

" An indoor pool although an expense to maintain would ensure that the locals and visitors can enjoy activity all year around - for our youth and our elders in particular where routine activity will have health benefits. It gives the opportunity for a number of water programmes to be run - at all levels, beginners, confidence builders to competitive swimming. How good would that be for our economy and the health and well being of our community? Less of a carbon footprint for all those groups and individuals who have to travel to Richmond for their water exercise all year round." 

" This is definitely needed for young and old. It is a big attraction for families for fun and fitness- and water safety as well. It's one of the most important initiatives for Motueka!" 

" It would be the best thing that could happen for Motueka. More people would want to live here because they could used a heated covered pool - instead of living in Richmond. Ours is an ageing population and a spa pool, wading pool and swimming pool would help so many people with aches pains, those who have had operations etc. Our competitive swimmers would not have to travel to train each day. Aqua jogging - another great exercise for all ages. It could also be of social benefit - it's amazing how much chat occurs in a swimming pool changing room." 

" It would benefit my family a lot as I have a severe epileptic son who can't always use his legs so when he not using them he has very low muscle tone a heated pool would be great as he loves swimming and helps with his physical side also it will mean he doesn't have to travel to Mapua every week for a hour session. A heated pool in Motueka will mean not having to travel far and being able to spend longer in the pool and also more often as well." 

" I think a heated swimming pool would be of huge benefit to both the old and young in the community. I also think it would be a huge benefit to local business in our town. How many families go swimming in Richmond and then go do their weekly grocery shop etc while there." 

The statistical results, plus the commentary by typical residents, prove a strong desire for this facility and an expectation of  a great utility.

As well as providing a year-round fun and fitness opportunity for the whole community, the survey showed that in particular a pool would benefit:

• our aging population - with hydrotherapy and exercise options
• baby, toddler and children swim classes - increasing safety
• young people for exercise and fun activity
• people with disabilities, injuries and illnesses - therapy
• tourists in the off-season or bad weather
• sportspeople for swim training.

Other benefits people saw was keeping local people in the local area and spending locally rather than having to travel to Richmond. There would also be savings in travel expenses, especially for those who train regularly at the Richmond aquatic centre.

Having new pools built specifically for this project will allow ALL pools to be heated to the right temperature for the target activities. Using modern heat pumps and photovoltaic electricity from the great Motueka sunshine helps to make this achievable.   

Weekend and school holiday use is key to a community pool with time trialled to ascertain the demand for the pool's usage. It is important that long-term financial viability is maintained so that costs for poolside staff match the number of users at the various opening times.

Givealittle website - This provides a safe donation facility, replying with a tax receipt. Useful for anything from small to large amounts, and especially for people without cheque books or who live in other parts of the world. Donate now

Online banking - You can make a payment via the standard internet banking network. Our bank account is with NBS, Motueka branch, number 03-1354-0360315-00. Please include a reference to the pool and your name.

Send a cheque - Post the cheque to Good Sports Motueka, PO Box 1, Motueka. Or contact the fundraising treasurer, Sue Clark, by emailing her sueclark40@gmail.com

We value every donation made to this project and endeavour to express our appreciation with a 'Thank You' letter or email.

All donations of $100 or more will be acknowledged on donor boards which will be installed on the walls of the pool complex. There will be five categories of acknowledgements: Bronze - $100 to $499, Silver - $500 to $999, Gold - $1,000 to $4,999, Platinum - $5,000 to $9,999 and Diamond - $10,000 and upward. Note that all non-anonymous donors' details of more than $100 are being kept in case, for some unforeseen reason, a refund is needed.

The fundraising committee is seeking a good proportion of the money from national funding agencies.  Those agencies will be happy to be involved after seeing community efforts in getting part-way to the target. They are awaiting regional support from Tasman District Council.

The committee is working toward this goal

• requests for donations from local businesses and citizens
• a broad variety of large and small fundraising events, raffles etc.
• an online 'Givealittle' campaign for smaller donations by people, including locals who are living elsewhere in the world and want to support their 'home' town
• donations from local construction and service businesses for work 'in kind' as part of the planning and construction stages to cut costs.

Note that Good Sports Motueka is a registered charity, so all donations are eligible for a 33% tax rebate.

Committee Members:

Fred Hickling President

Daryl MacLean

Sue Clark Treasurer / Event Organiser

Kathy Lloyd

Barry Dowler

Ross Loveridge

Maree Satherley