Warrnambool swimming club issue plea for extended outdoor pool season

Swimming club president Suzie Wellens has asked the Warrnambool City Council to consider budgeting for the extended season - something Cr Max Taylor said he was in favour of.

In a submission to the city council's draft budget, which is set to be adopted on June 26, Ms Wellens questioned why a longer season for the outdoor 50-metre pool had not been included.

She said for years, the club had had to negotiate with the council for an extended season and it was taking a toll on volunteers.

"Whilst on most occasions, recent negotiations have resulted in a 50-metre pool being opened a few weeks past the end date which is usually the long weekend in March," Ms Wellens said.

But, she said, the pool still closes before the national championships in April which this year in Brisbane included eight Warrnambool competitors.

Ms Wellens said those swimmers who had worked tirelessly to achieve that level of success were being "severely disadvantaged".

"Can council name a sport undertaken in Warrnambool that has national representation every year?" she said.

"Would council consider closing and restricting access to netball courts or football fields during pre-season and finals?

"Unlike land-based sports, we have limited control over access to our facilities."

Ms Wellens said the club appreciated the sport was specialised and required a different level of management and maintenance.

But she said swimming club members were paying their fair share to access the facilities six times a week, including gym membership and lane hire fees.

Compared to city swimmers in Geelong, Ballarat and Melbourne, she said Warrnambool swimmers were disadvantaged with the current season set by council.

Ms Wellens said the shorter season meant swimmers were not conditioned adequately when beginning the long course season, and were unable to maintain competition condition when they went international.

When AquaZone closes the outdoor pool, swimmers are forced to revert back to a 25-metre indoor pool with no alternatives.

Ms Wellens said it was "simply not suitable" and "definitely not acceptable" when the youngsters worked so hard and tirelessly for the sport they loved.

"For all the potential we have, the skill of the coaches, we cannot rise to the standard of our city partners without the access to suitable facilities for the necessary times," she said.

The club - which is growing by 30 per cent each year - wants to see the pool stay open between October 30 and April 7.

The plea from the club comes after other community groups and swimming clubs petitioned the council for all-year access to the outdoor pool - something that was dismissed as too costly.

"Whilst we understand that this is by no means a feasible outcome with the current state of the facility, there is definitely merit in considering a more suitable outdoor season," Ms Wellens said.

"I ask, if not now, when? Twenty years of negotiating, the club is not getting any smaller and the demand any less for facilities.

"If not accounted now in the budget, constant need for negotiation would continue to take a toll on the longevity of our volunteers and committee members."

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