The Fawkner Leisure Centre is about to be refurbished. Included as part of the public engagement is the future of the outside Fawkner pools, although that has not been made explicit.
The pools are ageing, purportedly leaking, and near end of life, according to Council staff.
The outside pools are open during summer and are a popular place to gather and socialise during hot weather.
The pools also contribute to a local cool park effect reducing the urban heat island microclimate of CB Smith Reserve.
Aerial thermal images during extreme heat days show this as a small island of coolness in a sea of elevated surface temperatures.
The buildings of John Fawkner College, Darul Ulum College, the Leisure Centre, and the John Fawkner College synthetic turf pitch all contribute to elevating urban heat island temperatures in the local area. The outside pools contribute to cooling the local area and mitigating the heat mass effects of the buildings and the synthetic pitch.
Local residents have started a petition to Moreland Council to save the outside pools:
We, the undersigned, petition Moreland City Council to:
Save Fawkner’s outdoor pools from closure.
The community is making this request to Moreland City Council due to concern that the pools will be significantly downgraded or removed under the planned upgrade to the Fawkner Leisure Centre.
By signing this petition we want to stress to Council that:
• The outdoor pools are a valued part of our community
• We want them to remain a part of our community into the future, particularly as our summers are expected to get hotter, and as they provide a valuable amenity to people of all ages in Fawkner.
• We want to be meaningfully consulted and heard on this issue.
Moreland’s summer temperatures and extreme heat days are expected to increase with climate change. Our summers are getting longer. We are going to need that outside pool for cooling the microclimate and cooling our bodies during heatwaves and extreme heat days. Four graphs:
Sustainable Fawkner 
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