"The site could accommodate multiple pools, including one Olympic-standard pool. It would be a space for all."
A group is calling for an outdoor heated swimming pool to be built in Dublin City Centre's George's Dock instead of the proposed €25 million white-water rafting facility.
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online petition to Dublin City Council has been started by a group called ‘George's Dock Lido Outdoor Swimming Pool’, suggesting that the controversial facility be replaced by a pool instead.
The petition has been circulating on Twitter over the past two days and has since gained 3,000 of its 5,000 signature goal.
"You may have heard about Dublin City Council’s proposal for a €25 million white-water-rafting facility located at George’s Dock,” the group penned.
"We acknowledge that elite water-sport athletes and the fire brigade require facilities to train. But we believe that this space, in Dublin's inner city, is not the right location for this facility. Surely there is a better solution.
“We propose the conversion of the space at George’s Dock into a large, public, outdoor swimming facility, for all Dubliners, accessible to all abilities. George’s Dock is the perfect location for such a proposal.”
The group added that multiple European cities have heated, outdoor swimming pools, accessible to the public, called Lidos.
They say that there are currently no publicly-accessible, open-air swimming pools in Dublin.
The group also said that Covid-19 has highlighted the importance of utilising public spaces "as meeting points and locations for exercise".
The group also suggested that the site could also accommodate multiple pools, including one Olympic-standard pool, and would be "a space for all, with public health benefits".
"Given the unique historic setting of George's Dock, with the right design, the George's Dock Lido could become a truly exceptional municipal asset for Dublin," they added.
"Citizen voices should be heard and a public consultation explored. The recent public consultation on the redesign of College Green received over 3,900 submissions from members of the public.
"The site could be sensitively designed to incorporate civic space and trees, accessible to non-swimming citizens."
