General News
14 February, 2026
No ifs, buts or maybes
THE Babinda community has showed up in force to send a strong message to Cairns Regional Council and Mayor Amy Eden that they want their public swimming pool saved and improved – and certainly not abandoned.
Council’s aquatic facilities strategy singles out Babinda Pool for “retirement” at it is at “end-of-life”, as early as this year.
But close to 400 people turned up at a meeting at the Babinda RSL Hall on Wednesday night last week organised by Babinda Taskforce to tell Cr Eden and other councillors, including Brett Moller, that they’re not having a bar of council’s plan to close down the pool.
Support for the campaign was played to the audience via video messages from “local heroes” – retired world champion triathlete Brad Beven and Channel 10 Queensland news presenter Sharyn Ghidella, who both grew up swimming at Babinda Pool.
Babinda State School principal Rob O’Brien spoke about the severe effects on the practicalities and time constraints of having to bus students to and from school to other swimming pools in Gordonvale or Innisfail for lessons and carnivals should the local facility close.
Babinda and District Community Organisation (Taskforce) president Dalitta Wright made a key presentation, which included the potential impacts on school children and seniors if the town’s 50m public swimming pool closed.
“I don’t think they’ve got any choice but to listen,” Ms Wright said.
“I think they realise that they are dealing with a professional organisation who has the capability to be able to embarrass them.”
She gave an example of how she said the so-called consultation process in the lead-up to the aquatic strategy was severely flawed.
“They say that they engaged with schools,” Ms Wright said.
“No, they didn’t, because we rang all of our schools around and not one of them received a telephone call or a meeting from anybody from council or the consultants,” she said.
“If they had have done that, they would have realised that the pool is actually part of the curriculum.”
Babinda Taskforce is putting together a submission to council about what future alternatives are possible to give the pool a new life and possibly expand the facility to include a children’s pool and seniors’ exercise pool. Submissions close on 30 April.
“We’re not forgiving them for ignoring our pool for the last 10 to 15 years, we are absolutely not forgiving them for that, but we will help them with a solution,” Ms Wright said.
Cr Moller (Div 1) said in post-meeting social media comment that although he attended the town meeting, he was not one of the speakers for good reasons.
He said he and Deputy Mayor Brett Olds were at the meeting to listen “while recognising that when all the feedback is received, it will be for the whole of council to then consider and decide on the outcomes of the strategy”.
Cr Moller said he was on the record as saying the pool was “the heart and soul of Babinda”.
Cr Eden said while there was a draft aquatic strategy being considered, “I encouraged the community to ensure their state and federal members and respective levels of governments also know what is happening in Babinda, how people are feeling and what they need”.
“What came through clearly is that Babinda is willing to work in partnership with all levels of government to protect a lifesaving, critical community asset,” she said.
Cr Eden said Babinda should be proud of their community’s commitment and tenacity.
