Pool plan fails to make a splash

People behind the push for Perth's first ocean pool are frustrated over the apparent lack of support from the local council seven months after releasing their concept.

Despite "overwhelming" positive public feedback, the Cottesloe beach pool committee says it is yet to convince the Town of Cottesloe to back its preferred location off the beach between the Indiana restaurant and north of Cottesloe groyne.

In a bid for the council's support, deemed crucial to generate private and public funding, a report outlining the pros and cons of four other locations will be presented to the council next week.

Committee member Rod Hamersley said yesterday the other sites, south and north of the groyne, next to the surf club and in Napier Street, were ranked on visual appeal, shelter, beach use, patrols, foreshore amenity and logistics such as building and maintenance.

While public feedback favoured a natural sea-fed pool, such as those in Sydney, coastal, environmental and civil engineers said this had problems, including weak tides and winter seaweed build-up.

Disability access was a problem at other sites as were "constructability" and rising sea level issues.

Mr Hamersley said of the 1600 responses since the concept was unveiled in July, 90 per cent were positive, with people supporting a 50m pool rather than the 33m proposed.

However, he said the council indicated at a meeting before Christmas it would remove the pool from a draft foreshore plan until support for the location was clarified.

"We're getting a little bit frustrated with the time it's taking," Mr Hamersley said. "We've provided a pretty good solution. We've offered to raise the funds to build it and raise the funds to run the pool.

"We're not asking a huge amount from them except give us a chance through the process."

Cottesloe chief executive Carl Askew said the council's foreshore working group had acknowledged the concept but a raft of detailed studies, consultations and approvals, including from the WA Planning Commission, would be needed. The idea was yet to be formally presented to the council.