A Dublin City Council official has denied new plans for the George's Dock site are the scrapped white water rafting centre "by stealth".
The controversial €25 million white water rafting project was scrapped after it proved to be very unpopular with the public and elected representatives. The government previously refused to hand over €19 million in funding for the project.
A presentation document to DCC's Central Area Committee, which was obtained by Dublin Live, outlined the "proposed scheme" of officials which includes three separate facilities which have winter and summer layouts. The biggest section at 3,200 sqm is the rescue village with a water course - the segment which has drawn concern from councillors about a repeat of the last project - and a mock village.
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The rescue village would be primarily used by the emergency services for training purposes, officials said. The four season swimming pool with a sauna and changing rooms is the second largest section at 2,000 sqm. The pool would be a 50m by 12.5m five lane lap pool.
The smallest section at 1,700 sqm would have a different layout depending on the time of the year. In summer, the space would be called a 'family-recreation area' which features a children's splash pool, a kids pool, a recreational pool, a casual diving pool, and changing areas.
It would be called a 'multi-use area' in winter which includes an ice rink, a venue for sports events, a Christmas market, a concert venue, and a venue for exhibitions.
The document suggests the public are in favour of a lido which means the pool and multi-use pool would be outdoor. The overall cost of the project has not been calculated but it is not anticipated to be any cheaper than the white water rafting centre which was to cost an estimated €25 million.
DCC Executive Director Derek Kelly said: "The overall cost, again it is just too early to tell. We haven't gotten into any of the detail on this but I wouldn't anticipate it being any cheaper than the white water that we came up with the last time which was in the €25 million bracket for the overall project. You are talking inflation in huge numbers since we did those numbers. Without throwing out a wild number, it is not going to be cheap."
In response to comments from Independent Councillor Mannix Flynn, Mr Kelly said: "Is this white water rafting by stealth? I can assure you it is not.
"The gradient in the swift water is nothing in the realms of what you can do with white water rafting. It would be like a lazy river in a water park.
"The drops aren't there. If someone wanted to throw a raft in, it would be too narrow. A canoe would hit the walls. It is not going to work."
Green Councillor Janet Horner expressed concern at the cost to users after what was proposed in the white water rafting project. Entry to this facility is estimated at €6 or €7.
Mr Kelly said: "The price point for entry - again it is probably a bit early to say but we are working on the basis of a very low price. Something along the lines of the access to our current swimming pools. I think it is about €6 or €7 for access."
He said Dublin City Council wouldn't get "the €50 that they get in the UK for white water" but added "we haven't gone into any great analysis on this".
The facility would be run by DCC's leisure centre staff and it is planned communities across the city would use it on a regular basis.
Cllr Nial Ring said: "It is a reiteration of the previous plan to a certain extent. We were showed four options and then there is a preferred option. I'd like to know who's preferred option?
"Certainly not the public's and certainly not the councillors. I don't know who came up with this preferred option. This can't be foisted on either us or the on the public or on the North-Inner City."
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