A Tauranga swim club has rolled up its sleeves and saved tens of thousands of dollars by repainting the Mount Maunganui College swimming pool themselves – all in the name of keeping a much-loved community facility open and thriving.

Members of the Omanu Swim Club spent a weekend in December water-blasting and repainting the 33-metre, six-lane outdoor pool, completing the job in two days at a fraction of the usual cost.

Club director Trish Mau said the pool was overdue for maintenance and water clarity had become an issue.

“Commercially, it can cost anywhere from $15,000 to $25,000 to repaint a pool,” she said.

“We weren’t even 100% sure the paint was the cause of the water clarity problems, but we decided it was something we could rule out – and hopefully fix – ourselves.”

Volunteers took charge

Instead of hiring contractors, the club put the call out to its members to volunteer.

“If you could spare half an hour, an hour, or a couple of hours, we said ‘come along and help’,” Mau said.

The response was overwhelming.

“About 30 different people turned up over the weekend. Some stayed longer than others – everyone just did what they could.”

Armed with water blasters, rollers and brushes, volunteers stripped back the old surface and repainted the pool – even carefully repainting the black lane lines down the middle.

From decision to completion, the job took about 48 hours and cost the club about $2000 in paint.

“It was pretty amazing to watch,” Mau said.

“I’d just had eye surgery the day before, so I couldn’t do much myself. I was supposed to be lying low, but instead I was sitting back organising people and watching everyone come and go.

“People genuinely loved being part of it. It was an awesome thing to witness.”

Year-round use

The pool is used year-round by the Omanu Swim Club, which trains at the Mount College facility mornings, afternoons and evenings.

Members range in age from young swimmers representing New Zealand in various sports through to adults in their 60s and even 70s.

The Omanu Swimming Club trains at the Mount Maunganui College swimming pool. Photo / David Hall

The club also runs swim squads and lessons for children throughout the year, with training overseen by qualified coaches.

While the pool is leased and maintained in collaboration with Mount Maunganui College, it opens to the public during summer holidays.

Fun and inclusivity

The pool has been open daily 11am-4pm this month. Entry costs $5 per person, under-fives swim free, and no fee for spectators. A qualified lifeguard is on duty at all times.

Mau said opening the pool to the public was an important part of the club’s community focus.

“We’re very much community-based,” she said. “A lot of swim clubs are purely focused on elite athletes, but our motto is about having fun, learning to swim along the way, and being inclusive – regardless of background, goals or how often you can attend.”

The refreshed pool is already being put to good use, with local schools cooling off during the warmer months and visiting teams borrowing the facility when other pools are unavailable.

Mau said the weekend repaint summed up what the club was all about.

“It showed what can happen when people pitch in together. This pool means a lot to a lot of people – not just our club, but the wider Mount community.”