Hole in the ground will become new water park
There’s a possibility even of a nudist swimming session because there’s been demand for that.
THIS is what the Moorways water park looks like after five months of construction work.
And that enormous hole you can see to the right, which is where the swimming pool facilities will go, gives an indication of the sheer scale of the project.
The new water park will feature a 50m swimming pool and England’s first wave-generating wow ball, which spins to create ripples in the water. There will also be two fourstorey flumes, a learner’s pool and a host of other features.
Councillor Robin Wood, city council cabinet member for leisure and culture, said it will also be possible to divide the pool into different sections.
This will mean different types of leisure can be accommodated and might even include “nudist swimming sessions”. He said: “As an institution we wanted to give residents something extra. Instead of just a 50m pool it’s a leisure pool as well and we are asking 11-year-olds how they would like it to be decorated as they will be using it the most.
“I think it’ll be worth the wait, it’ll be so much more than just a pool. The pool itself will be very flexible as we can divide it into three sections and have different things on at different times for marginalised groups.
“So we could have a women’sonly swimming session, there’s a possibility even of a nudist swimming session because there has been a demand for that, so all of that can be accommodated without closing the whole pool.”
Work on the £42million project began in February. In the space of a few months the groundwork has been laid and the building’s steel framework erected.
Councillor Wood added: “The great thing is that coronavirus hasn’t delayed the work here. The people working here have found ways of getting all their opportunities to work in a socially distanced way – it is quite remarkable.
“The project is still on budget and still on time to be finished at the end of next year, and it has been local suppliers providing the materials, which is great - they are all Derby firms.” Hand sanitising stations are located around the site and workers are required to adhere to social distancing rules at all times.
Project manager John Gisbourne, of Bowmer and Kirkland, said the pool was a “fabulous” feature for both Derby city and further afield.
He added: “It will bring the community together, not just for Derby but it’s a regional thing, from Staffordshire to Lincolnshire. Nowhere has facilities like this.”