A City of Mandurah councillor has raised a motion to extend opening hours, provide healthier food options and monitor parking facilities at a local recreation centre.
Coastal ward councillor Fred Riebeling said he held a series of concerns over the Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre that had lead him to develop the motion and put it before his fellow councillors.
A regular visitor to the centre on Pinjarra Road, Mr Riebeling said the sporting precinct had become a valuable asset to the community, but it needed to address some arising issues.
At a council meeting on Tuesday, he questioned why the opening hours of the gymnasium had to alter on the weekends, arguing the change threw people’s workout routines out of sync.
“The reason for this motion is in many cases, people have an exercise routine that is followed and the current weekend operating hours, in my view, do not support these routines,” the motion stated.
He proposed an after hours access be created to let members in via a double-door side entrance.
Mr Rieleling said their was a variety of private gyms in the city that offered an all hours service to its members and pushed that council consider jumping on the concept.
As the facility wouldn’t be staffed during those extended hours, Mr Rieleing highlighted that operational costs wouldn’t be an issue.
In fact, he said staff could even start later, cutting cost even more.
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Another issue that stood out for Mr Riebeling was the food options available to visitors.
He said a bain marie full of hot chips stuck him when he attended the centre.
“The other thing that stuck out for me was the food provided at the canteen,” he said.
“We should, in my view, be responsible and have healthy options.”
He questioned why the City of Mandurah would allowed for the sale of “unhealthy food” at their “premium health facility”.
Lastly, Mr Rieleling said a plan needed to be put in place to ensure visitors parked in designated bays.
Deputy mayor Caroline Knight agreed and said she had seen 4WDs parked in places that were compromising the large tuart trees in planted in the area.
Councillors voted unanimously in favour of allowing officers to prepare a report into the issues.
It’s unclear when the report will be presented back to council.
To read the motion, visit the City of Mandurah’s website and view their March 27 meeting agenda.
