Goldfields Oasis roof works to leak-proof centre not a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to mould issues, says mayor

More than $1 million in works to leak-proof the Goldfields Oasis roof are not a “knee-jerk reaction” to recent mould issues at the centre, Kalgoorlie-Boulder mayor Glenn Wilson says. A tenderer for the repair and renewal works for the centre’s roof was endorsed at Monday night’s council meeting, just weeks after the gym was temporarily closed to investigate and manage a mould outbreak in the administration office. The problems with the roof were also highlighted on the first morning the gym reopened this month, with water pouring in during heavy rain. Regular gym user Jodie Johnson told the Kalgoorlie Miner she was fed up with the “disgraceful” state of the facility. Mr Wilson said the timing of the tender was coincidental, with the scope of works and tender process being under way for a “good 12 months”, with no tenders received previously. “This was not a knee-jerk reaction to something that has just gone on in the last couple of weeks,” he said during this week’s meeting. Cr Nardia Turner said the council had been warned about the issues which occurred being a possibility, as the works were “well overdue”. She said was glad to see a tender finally submitted and looked forward to the improvements making the facility “workable” again for its users. While all councillors supported the motion, Cr Terrence Winner said he was disappointed to see the $1.5m for the works leave the community, with no tender submissions made by local businesses. He encouraged locals to consider putting in tenders for projects in the future. Mr Wilson said if locals were not concerned about local projects, there was “not much” the council could do about it. The works will include replacing the basketball court and main indoor pool skylights with new roof sheeting, replacing the existing roof for the admin and gym area, re-fixing the existing roof with new roof screws and installing new box gutters and connections to down pipes. All redundant air-conditioning units will be removed, and solar power and pool heating systems will be removed and re-installed.