ALBURY councillor Stuart Baker would like a municipal outdoor pool in the Twin Cities to remain open all-year round, noting such a move would ease pressure on indoor pools.
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The long-term proponent for better aquatic facilities said there was certainly a "massive demand" from pool users for winter swimming.
"A lot of people are disenfranchised as soon as the season is finished and they can't continue their sport and they get a flat feeling about it," Cr Baker said.
His comments follow early morning six-day-a-week swimmer Tam McGovern organising a petition calling for Wodonga Council to open the WAVES centre over winter.
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It seeks "the pool be open during the off-season, it would be possible to open 4 hours morning and afternoon" and states. "there's enough people that would come from the district if they knew; there's the Tri Club and people training that would go if open".
The request has 91 signatories and was to be formally acknowledged at Monday night's Wodonga Council meeting with a report to collated and presented at a future gathering for consideration.
Mr McGovern collected names at Albury and Wodonga pools from late January.
"I've talked about it and I've thought about it and thought it wouldn't do any harm by asking and I've spoken to all the councillors and most of them are happy about it," he said.
"I mean this place is only getting bigger and there are more and more people coming here."
The retired miner, 72, swims at the indoor pool at Wodona's leisure centre in winter.
"It gets too crowded because you've got everyone from Albury-Wodonga and Beechworth and all around swimming there," Mr McGovern said.
"The lanes are too narrow and you've got too many in the lane and it's only 25 metres long and the chlorine levels are high because it's indoor."
Cr Baker said there were strains on the leisure centre and Albury's GT Aquatics and Gould Swimming Academy were at capacity through winter.
While he would like an outdoor pool in Albury or Wodonga opened all-year round, he believes taking the existing opening period into May should be considered.
"I think an extension of the season needs looking at, whether it would fly in the depth of winter I'm not sure, but it could at least run for another four weeks and open early and that could take pressure off some of the smaller indoor pools," Cr Baker said.
He would like Albury and Wodonga councils and their pools contractor Aligned Leisure to discuss changes to opening periods leading into next spring's re-opening.
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