Overview

Perhaps nothing defines Melbourne and its people more than the Yarra River (Birrarung). Inspired by successful urban river swimming projects globally and here at home, Yarra Pools is a community-led proposal to re-introduce recreation and water-play to the lower Yarra and, in doing so, to transform an under used section of the iconic river’s northern bank into a thriving community facility. This riverside precinct will be active and vibrant and accessible to all. Bringing people a perspective of the river not seen since the middle of last century. The global movement towards reviving urban river swimming and the growing demand for healthy waterways have gone hand-in-hand. Cities around the world are re-connecting with their rivers and harbours and it’s the people driving change. Yarra Pools aims to bring people back to the river by advocating a swimmable and therefore healthy waterway all while celebrating a unique site’s cultural history by incorporating community involvement through design and ongoing operation. Produced by a small team of passionate Melburnians. Yarra Pools is seeking support to advance the project through a community-led, multi-staged design and construction process. This will ensure we deliver a facility by Melbourne for Melbourne.