Amelia Tattam, the 18-year-old leading the latest charge to save Big Splash. Photo: James Coleman.
A group of young Canberrans is preparing to pounce on the Big Splash site with a proposal to reopen it as a broader sports and recreation precinct – if the ACT Government pulls the plug on the site’s long-troubled lease this Friday (23 January).
As the deadline looms for the waterpark to comply with its Crown lease conditions, the newly formed ‘Save Big Splash’ group believes the moment is right for the government to step in and redevelop it with a new 50-metre outdoor pool and water slides, as well as greater integration with the neighbouring tennis courts and sports oval.
One of the waterpark’s former owners is also ready to come on board with private investment, and add a swim school and hydrotherapy pool – and even a wave pool.
Who’s behind Save Big Splash – and what they want
Save Big Splash is led by three longstanding friends – Amelia Tattam, Amelia Condon-Cernovs and Isla Robertson – who all have fond memories of visiting the park in its heyday.
“We’ve been friends since we were six,” Tattam, aged 18, says.
“We’ve been visiting Big Splash for as long as we can remember, loving the park, going to birthday parties, school carnivals, visiting with families, friends.
“So when we heard there was action needing to be taken to protect Big Splash, we all banded together to form a group … to see what we can do to save it.”
Their vision includes three non-negotiables: “I think the future Big Splash definitely needs to have a 50-metre pool, the water slides that we all know and love, and some lawn area.”
“Those three factors are non-negotiable. But as for the rest of the park, I think that’s 100 per cent up for discussion,” Tattam says.
The group wants to better link the site with the nearby tennis courts, sports ovals and clubs, creating what they describe as a “shared recreational precinct” rather than a stand-alone waterpark.
Why the Big Splash situation is coming to a head
Big Splash has failed to open for three seasons, despite repeated warnings from Access Canberra, at least two online petitions, and pressure from local politicians of all stripes.
Under the site’s Crown lease, it must operate as a recreational facility, and Friday, 23 January, marks the official deadline for compliance.
“After this date, and if they fail to comply, further enforcement, including an Intention to Terminate the Crown lease, may be issued,” a government spokesperson has said.
Earlier this week, the site’s lenders also zip-tied repossession notices to the fences, effectively taking control from owner Translink Property Management Pty Ltd, which bought the lease in 2021 for $7.5 million.
Notices of possession have been tied to the fences at Big Splash this week. Photo: Ian Bushnell.
For Tattam, it was clear this was the time to launch ‘Save Big Splash’.
“I think now’s the best time to kind of get it as public as possible, to spread as much awareness as we can while everyone’s got their eye on it,” she says.
The group already plans to lodge a formal proposal with the ACT Government if and when the lease is terminated.
The former owners want in, too
Watching closely is Alena Sarri, whose family built much of Big Splash in the 1980s, back when it was still known as the Jamo Pool.
Sarri manages Aquatots swim schools across Canberra and the region, but says the Belconnen site is woven into her family’s history – and she’s gutted to watch the weeds and graffiti take it over.
“Growing up, I’d go every day – that’s where my mum started teaching swimming,” she has said.
She’s been trying in vain to contact the site’s owners since late last year about a plan to open an indoor hydrotherapy pool and learn-to-swim facility on the site, as a way to help offset the waterpark’s seasonal operating costs.
“We specialise in infants, which really marries up with hydro facilities as well because they’re nice and warm, and with an aging population in Canberra, these pools are needed,” she says.
“Swim lessons for kids are always needed as well … and all year round, which would then obviously offset the cost of running the seasonal water park. But even there, there are lots of people interested in winter swimming outdoors now – people swim in Iceland in -4 degrees, so there’s no reason why we can’t do it.
“And then Melbourne’s also got an amazing wave pool that runs all year round. There are places colder than Canberra that make it work.”
Sarri has already met with Save Big Splash and backs their push.
“I think what they’re doing is amazing, and we’re totally on board with supporting them and helping them,” Sarri says.
Alena Sarri’s family ran Big Splash from 1979 to 1990. Photo: James Coleman.
How a revived Big Splash could stack up financially
In recent months, several competing visions for Big Splash have emerged.
Purdons, a Braddon-based planning consultancy hired by the current owners, floated concepts including multi-storey accommodation buildings and a single indoor pool – but with no slides. When that proposal became public, the firm noted they were “already outdated”.
What Big Splash could look like, according to an earlier plan by Belconnen’s SQC Group. Image: SQC Group.
Separately, a Belconnen-based architecture firm released a speculative master plan that keeps the slides, adds a covered 50-metre pool, and introduces year-round community uses.
“They’re the assets that are connected to the memory of Canberrans,” architect Sean Hogan told Region in December last year.
“I think they’re vital to try to keep and refurbish.”
Both relied on mixed-use buildings around the outdoor water features to keep the waterpark open year-round.
Both Sarri and the Save Big Splash group agree some level of government funding would be crucial.
Sarri says this could take the form of subsidies, similar to what is already provided to Belgravia Leisure to run the Gungahlin, Civic and Stromlo pools.
Tattam would like to see Big Splash funded as part of community infrastructure, alongside playgrounds, libraries and sports fields.
“The cost of doing nothing is losing a crucial public asset forever, so we’re really focused on working with the government to find a solution that delivers value for the community as a whole.”
Weeds and graffiti are taking over the facility. Photo: James Coleman.
What’s next
Save Big Splash, joined by Sarri, plans to submit a formal proposal to the ACT Government soon.
For now, the group is asking the community to help shape what comes next, particularly those who already use the surrounding sporting facilities.
“It’s really important we work together and create a shared vision that can accommodate the needs of the whole community,” Tattam says.
Save Big Splash can be contacted through its official Facebook and Instagram pages.
