By Saskia Konynenburg and Peter de Graaf
Work on the $10 million Whangarei Aquatic Centre complex is on schedule and the new pools - including two hydroslides - should be ready for opening in July.
Sport Northland chief executive Brent Eastwood said despite recent heavy rain the project was on budget and
on time.
"It's all going very well. We've just finished concreting the main wave pool and the next major thing will be tiling it. The hydroslide has arrived and will be fitted once the slide tower is finished," he said.
The new roof was complete and contractors were working to join it to the roof over the existing pool.
The new complex will have four pools - a wave pool with a beach and "lagoon" that can also be used as a 25m lane pool, a 12m hydrotherapy pool which will be kept at 35degC, and toddler and spa pools.
Pool designer Ian Speirs, of Interpool Pacific in New Plymouth, said the hydroslides would be 76m and 85m long.
The longer one was geared towards children and families; the shorter, faster one was for the more adventurous.
The hydroslide tube was made in Christchurch.
The complex is being paid for by the Whangarei District Council with grants from the ASB Trust. A definite opening date has not been set as extensive testing is required once construction work is complete.
