Pool owners, council’s reaching for your wallet.
My wife and I built a swimming pool on our property some years ago. The construction was approved by Byron Shire Council and a final occupation certificate issued. We both believe in pool safety as far too many drownings, mostly of children, have occurred in inadequately fenced and gated pools. We were happy therefore to register our pool as part of the NSW government’s swimming pool register in accordance with section 30B of the Swimming Pools Act 1992.
I recently received a letter from Council informing me that Council would be inspecting our pool on February 23 to check compliance, fences, gates, etc. So far so good; I have no problem allowing inspectors onto my property to do their job.
At the bottom of the letter was a paragraph headed: Recovery of cost of entry and inspection. This went on to say that I would be charged $140 for the initial inspection and a further $100 if a reinspection was required. I reread the letter several times, thinking I had misunderstood, but no, it meant exactly what I thought it did.
Every pool owner in the Shire will be charged this onerous inspection fee. It is a rort, a joke. I didn’t ask the council to come and inspect my pool, though I am quite happy for them to do so at their cost. I cannot see why we have to fund the inspection by subsidising council salaries and I refuse to do so.
All pool owners should make a stand, refuse to pay this money-grabbing inspection fee. We pay rates – don’t they cover council costs?
Ron Olesen, Ocean Shores
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