An “immediate health and safety risk” at a Waihī swimming pool means getting summer ready will cost ratepayers $100,000.

The existing gas chlorinator was the reason for an evacuation last year and is an “immediate health and safety risk to both operators and users of the facility”, according to a Hauraki District Council agenda.

So ratepayers will pick up the bill for a new salt chlorination unit – though the council doesn’t own the pool.

It’s leased from the Ministry of Education – unlike the council-owned pools in Ngātea and Paeroa – but the council is responsible for its maintenance costs.

The chlorinator replacement was discussed in a council meeting last month, when other issues such as filtration, leaks and surface damage were raised.

The decision to replace the device for $100,000 was finalised in Hauraki’s extraordinary meeting on Tuesday.

Hauraki mayor Toby Adams had previously told the Local Democracy Reporting that “tough conversations” need to be had with the ministry in terms of ownership, and said those have now started.

Hauraki mayor Toby Adams would like either a longer-term lease or for council to acquire ownership of the pool. Photo / Kelly Hodel, Waikato Times (single use)

“It’s really their responsibility but we know the education department doesn’t have any spare funds for it and we know the school wouldn’t be able to access funds for it so it leaves us in a tricky spot.”

Adams said the council doesn’t want to keep investing in an asset that’s not fit for purpose, likening it to repairing an old car when “it would have been cheaper and more efficient to look at a newer one”.

Restoration efforts, including switching to a safer and efficient chlorination model, may kick-start a new overarching strategy for district pools, Adams said.

However, that will wait until after the start of the swimming season.

“Right before the start of a pool season’s not the right time so we need to make sure our public has got access to that [and] getting ready for the summer months,” Adams said.

“It’s going to be extremely hot and they’re going to be very important so we’ll work on that.”

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.