Ninove (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): The renovation of Ninove’s swimming pool is delayed due to issues including logistics and additional soil surveys. Alderman Marc Torrekens estimates a potential reopening by late 2025.
The swimming pool in Ninove which has been around for more than 20 years is going to be renovated. The city of Ninove is working with Sportoase a private company to take care of this project. Sportoase will manage the renovation from start to finish as well as handle the day-to-day running and upkeep of the swimming pool. Sportoase will update, maintain and run the swimming pool in Ninove. In return Ninove will pay Sportoase 1.7 million euros each year for 30 years. It has been said that this partnership lets the city tap into Sportoase’s experience in managing sports facilities and ensures the swimming pool stays in great shape for many years.
What are the reasons behind the delay in Ninove’s swimming pool renovation?
Ninove was supposed to get more than a million euros from the Flanders government to fix its swimming pool. But even with the money and plans ready the renovation is delayed because unexpected problems came up affecting how quickly the project can be finished. There are problems like logistics, rules, or issues with the renovation that have caused delays. Because of these problems the renovation start date is pushed back affecting when the project will be done. The money from Flanders is meant to help Ninove improve the swimming pool but they need to solve these unexpected issues before they can continue with the renovation.
Alderman Marc Torrekens from OpenVLD said a few things caused the swimming pool renovation in Ninove to be delayed. First COVID-19 caused problems. Then prices went up and loan interest rates rose making it harder to stick to the timeline and budget for the project. Due to needing an extra soil survey the renovation of the swimming pool in Ninove will be delayed once more. This new requirement means the project will take longer to finish pushing back the reopening of the swimming poo.
The city of Ninove did a first soil check for the new swimming pool part but it wasn’t enough.The notaries say they need to do another soil survey to make sure everything is okay. As of now the city doesn’t know much about how the extra survey is going. It has been said that they have to wait for updates before they can make solid plans. The alderman thinks the swimming pool might open by the end of 2025 because of these extra survey needs.
