Long awaited Lucan swimming pool to open by Autumn 2018
By Brendan Grehan
THE LONG-AWAITED Lucan swimming pool will be open by autumn 2018.
The news came in this week’s Lucan Area Committee meeting of South Dublin County Council.
SDCC has committed €6.2 million to the project.
The new pool will be located at Griffeen Valley Park and work has started on design and planning.
Helen Farrell from the #Pool4Lucan campaign described the news as “fantastic”.
She told The Echo: “It is good to have concrete news so that people can start making plans. It is going to be a sports complex.”
Ms Farrell said that a number of factors had led to the fruition of the swimming pool campaign.
She said: “The campaign was one that brought together the community, local councillors, TDs and ministers.
There was cross-party support for the campaign. It is great now that we have this news.”
The news that the pool will be open by October/November 2018 came in a response to a motion tabled by local councillors William Lavelle and Vicki Casserly.
The motion welcomed last month’s announcement by Minister for Sport Michael Ring and calls on the Chief Executive to outline a timeline for the next stages of the project, including the work involved in preparing a feasibility study and arrange an appropriate process of consultation with local residents, parents and interest groups and sporting interests such as water polo, and persons with special needs and/or disabilities including their parents.
The council replied that the project must comply with the department’s procedures which includes four stages in a swimming pool project: feasibility study/preliminary report; contract documents; tender and construction. They stated that local authorities may not proceed to the next stage of a project until prior written approval issues from the Department.
The feasibility study/preliminary report is been finalised at present and will be submitted to the Department and the council will then await further instruction to proceed to the next phase.
It is anticipated that the Part 8 Consultation process will be September of this year with a view to completion of the project October/November 2018.
Cllrs Lavelle and Casserly have welcomed the SDCC commitment to provide €6.2m in funding for the pool.
Cllr. Lavelle said : “While there has been much focus on the very welcome €3.8m Government funding announced by our Fine Gael colleague (former) Minister for Sports Michael Ring, the majority of funding for the new Lucan Swimming Pool – some €6.2m – will be provided by South Dublin County Council through the Capital Budget 2016 -2018 following a campaign led by Cllr. Casserly and I. This money which will be raised by development levies and the sale of lands.”
Cllr. Casserly states: “The past 18 months have seen a united and concerted campaign by the Lucan community to seek our long-awaited pool. Well done to all involved, particularly the #Pool4Lucan campaign who have mounted a petition for the pool and who have been very active campaigning on social media.”
