A major enhancement to the Newcastle Ocean Baths is expected to improve the water quality, according to City of Newcastle.

Tenders, to complete Stage 1 of the work, have closed with council on track to appoint a head contractor at its October meeting.

The upgrade is a staged project with the pools, promenades and pumps prioritised for Stage 1 while the upper concourse and pavilion building will be considered in Stage 2. 

Deputy Lord Mayor Declan Clausen said a less visible but highly-important part of the first phase was the installation of the pumps, which would see three new submersible pump sets constructed adjacent to the existing pumpstation, which is being retained as a heritage feature.

“Newcastle Ocean Baths is approximately four times the size of an Olympic-sized swimming pool and holds about 6.5 million litres of water,” he explained.

“Currently the pool is operated by being filled and drained once a week with no or limited circulated water in-between when the oceans are calm, as is often the case during peak-use periods in summer.

“A new pump system with capacity to turn the pool water over in six hours will significantly improve water quality and clarity.”

City of Newcastle acting director of infrastructure and property Joanne Rigby said six pumping system options were contemplated before a final wet well structure was specified to deliver improvements to health and safety and equipment reliability and maintainability.

“There is a lot to consider for infrastructure located in a sea water environment,” she stated.

“Currently we need to replace the pumps every three months, however we expect to get up to six years of life from the new pump system.

“Safety for our pool maintenance team will also be improved with the ability to operate the pump system remotely, minimising the need to access the infrastructure which, in the current location in large swell events, is hazardous or just not possible.”

The new pump system will be located underground to the north of the existing pump house with only the pumpstation access lids being visible.

City of Newcastle is committed to funding the renewal of Newcastle Ocean Baths and has directed the $9.5 million recovered from the sale of the Frederick Ash Building towards the project.

Stage 1 also received $3 million in funding from the NSW Government under the NSW Public Spaces Legacy Program.

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