Upgrade of Cork's Gus Healy swimming pool ‘long overdue’

A LABOUR Party candidate running for a seat on Cork City Council this year has said that the time is “long overdue” for the Gus Healy swimming pool to be upgraded through central funding.

Peter Horgan, a candidate in the city’s South East ward, said he intends to write to Cork City Council requesting the local authority to apply for State funding to revamp the Ballinlough pool.

“A new round of large-scale infrastructure investment is opening soon,” said Mr Horgan. 

“The Gus Healy swimming pool, in Ballinlough, is well overdue for an upgrade. It is in the ownership of the local authority and services a large number of schools and clubs in the immediate area. It deserves to be state of the art. 

"If we are serious about competing in Olympics, Paralympics, World Championships, and other international galas, we need a better swimming pool set-up here in the Ballinlough/Douglas area, which is locally supported. 

"It is critical in supporting active lifestyles at all ages, too. I will be writing to Cork City Council to urge them to seek this upgrade, one that is long, long overdue,” Mr Horgan said.

The National Sports Policy, which was published in 2018, provided for the establishment of a large-scale sport infrastructure fund (LSSIF). The aim of the LSSIF is to provide exchequer support for larger sports projects, where the investment would be greater than the maximum amount available under the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme (SCEP). A new round of LSSIF is to open for applications in the first half of this year.