Stagnant waters no more – a flood of fresh momentum is sweeping through Motueka’s indoor aquatic centre project, with a major fundraising campaign launching this month.
The campaign builds on three decades of groundwork and community commitment, and all going to plan, shovels will be in the ground in 2027.
The Tasman District Council has committed $15.6 million to the $20 million project, with $11.7 million of that coming from reserve financials contributions.
Outgoing councillor Barry Dowler explains that the latter is raised from fees charged to developers and describes the funds as “like an internal loan” between Motueka, Waimea and Golden Bay.
The $3.9m balance of the TDC contribution will come from funded loans, which Barry says will increase household rates by $1.50 or $2 per year.
The council has charged the community with raising the remaining $4.4 million – about 22 per cent of the total build cost – in alignment with its community facilities funding policy.
Fundraising began in the mid-90s, and long-standing aquatic centre committee member Fred Hickling says the committee has taken careful track of every cent along the way, ensuring that as little as possible was spent and all donations were ringfenced for the project.
“I treated it like it was my money,” Fred summarises. Committee chair Ross Loveridge says the early volunteers were “a selfless bunch” who were indeed “really good custodians of that money”.
“They laid the foundations,” he says, adding that those initial funds have spent many years earning interest in term deposits at Nelson Building Society.
As per a recent article in the Guardian, the project has suffered a great many setbacks along the way, and in 2009 the volunteers decided that Motueka Pool Committee Incorporated should be subsumed by local charity Good Sports Motueka, to give the lagging venture a lifeline. The community-raised funds of just under $50,000 were transferred too, still earmarked to the pool project.
Since then, a further $200,000 has been added to the coffers from additional fundraising and interest. The project received a huge boost in 2024, with a gift of more than $400,000 from the outgoing Ngawhatu Pool Users Group in Nelson.
With funds that have long been allocated both locally and nationally from the Lions, Lionesses and Rotary Foundations, “that should get us our first million,” says Ross.
He says large funders such as Rata and Lotteries will likely provide that much again.
“Expecting another million from those types of funders is realistic,” he says. “We’ve talked with them over the years and we’re confident that our need for an aquatic centre in Motueka aligns with their funding criteria.”
He explains that the pool will be styled “as a Corolla rather than a Range Rover” that will suit our community’s needs.
“This pool will be a place where our children learn to swim, where older people can stay active, and where families and friends connect year-round. It’s something everyone can get behind.”
The new fundraising campaign, encouraging the community to “pool together”, is kicking off this week. Locals can expect to see refreshed pool branding displayed on posters, flyers and new billboards, with upcoming community events to create an even bigger splash and more opportunities for engagement.
The campaign costs are covered by a community engagement grant from NZ Lotteries Commission, as well as other unallocated funds, separate from donations.
Supporters can donate one-off, weekly, monthly or annually via motuekaaquaticcentre.nz
