Re-Open Hillcrest Swimming Pool

Hillcrest Swimming Pool To Re-Open 17 September 2025

Thank you to each and every one of you for making it happen!

Feedback. Continuous Closure of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool.

Date: 27 August 2025

Feedback. Continuous Closure of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool.

Dear Residents

As your councillor in Ward56 I wish to provide an update on the progress made thus far in respect of the re-opening of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool.

On Thursday, 21 August 2025, the community petition previously submitted to the City was formally presented by Mr. Jean-Pierre Verster, one of the principal signatories, together with myself as Ward Councillor. The second petition was supported by more than 3,200 members of the community, joined by Olympians, athletes, and community leaders. During the hearing, we emphasised that the continuous closure of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool is a matter of national importance, as it serves as a training facility for national athletes, and must be recognised as such by the City, the Province, and the National Government.

The Section 79 Committee on Petitions made the following recommendations:
        •       That the Chief Operations Officer of the City of Tshwane, together with a representative of Rand Water, must appear before the Committee at the  next hearing in September. 
        •       That the City consider aCommunity Upliftment Precinct (CUP) application in respect of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool, thereby empowering the community to participate in projects such as the drilling of a borehole, routine maintenance, and beautification.

At present, final authority rests with the COO, Mrs. Vuyo Zitumane. The justification provided for the continued closure of public swimming pools is said to be water restrictions imposed by Rand Water. This claim is without merit and cannot be accepted as valid.

We are working closely with a collective of concerned community members and affected stakeholders to formulate strategies aimed at holding the COO accountable, while also establishing a sustainable and transparent framework for the effective management of the pool in future.

Furthermore, I am engaging with my colleagues in the City of Tshwane DA Caucus, as well as Members of the Provincial Legislature and Members of Parliament, to ensure that this issue receives the urgent attention it deserves.

The goal remains to have the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool re-opened in time for the coming season.

We are committed to seeing Hillcrest restored to its rightful dignity.

My sincere gratitude is extended to all who have signed the petition and continue to support this important effort.

Yours faithfully,
Cllr. Tiaan Dippenaar
Ward 56

Second Petition to Urgently Restore and Preserve Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool through a Community Upliftment Programme (CUP)

Dear Signatories, we herewith give feedback and attached proof that the City of Tshwane has finally acknowledged the petition. 

It is with a sense of grave civic urgency and renewed communal resolve that I herewith submit, under solemn cover, the second petition for the preservation, restoration, and enduring stewardship of the Hillcrest Municipal Swimming Pool—an irreplaceable civic asset and site of incalculable public benefit to the citizenry of Tshwane.

This appeal, now endorsed by no fewer than 3,243 concerned signatories, follows our previous petition dated 17 May 2023, wherein 2,091 voices were raised in unified support of this historic facility. Then, as now, we entreated the City of Tshwane to restore and safeguard this Olympic-standard, FINA-compliant public pool—a site hallowed not only by the footsteps of national champions and Olympians but by generations of ordinary residents whose aspirations were nurtured within its waters.

The City, to its credit, did in 2023 respond by reopening the pool, and we acknowledge with gratitude the interim care bestowed. However, as of February 2025, a return to neglect has ensued, occasioned—so it is claimed—by impediments in the supply chain and other administrative exigencies. The community has once again been left bereft of a vital public space: a space where young and old alike have trained, healed, learned, qualified, and found fellowship.

With the present petition, we do not merely seek the reopening of the Hillcrest Swimming Pool. We urge the City to move decisively toward a sustainable future for this facility by committing to a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with qualified private-sector entities under a Community Upliftment Programme (CUP) framework. Such a public-private partnership would allow the City to retain ownership while entrusting day-to-day management and maintenance to competent custodians with a vested interest in excellence and community service.

We make the following earnest demands:

1. Immediate refilling and reopening of the Hillcrest Swimming Pool to the public.
2. Assurance of uninterrupted chlorine gas provision to maintain hygienic and safe swimming conditions, especially given the repeated delays historically encountered.
3. Engagement with identified investors and stakeholders who are willing and ready to take up a CUP-based management model, thereby securing the facility’s future in partnership with the City.

It must be stated unequivocally that this is not a partisan matter. This movement is not borne of political affiliation, but of community devotion. The undersigned include national athletes, job seekers in uniformed services, certified instructors, physical rehabilitation patients, school learners, and countless ordinary citizens—united in the belief that this public pool must not be allowed to decay into obsolescence.

Let it not be said that Tshwane stood idle as an institution of hope and health was left to rot. Let it rather be said that Tshwane chose innovation over inertia, partnership over apathy, and service over silence.

Enclosed herewith is the signed petition in full. We entreat the City to respond without delay, and we stand ready to furnish all necessary documentation.

May prudence, foresight, and the public good prevail in this matter of profound consequence.

You Said It! Best Of The Comments

"Pretoria provided more than half of the Olympians to Paris - let's not lose our relevance to South African swimming"

"Our competitive swimmers have suffered these past 4 months due to the pool's closure and are not up to standard - this has placed them at a disadvantage going in to the upcoming Regional and National championships" 

"We now need to travel out of province for competitions - this is very expensive and time-consuming, and not sustainable!"

"The pool is a platform for making swimming available to all races and cultures from all walks of life, bringing the city together" 

"Pretoria has a history of producing world-class swimmers - how can we be regarded as a world class capital city when we don't have even one public swimming pool open?"

"Closing Hillcrest Pool has taken away a source of upliftment and opportunity for people who cannot afford gym memberships and private pool club fees"

"As an older person I can swim in my own way, at my own tempo"

"Hillcrest Pool has been the most central and most well-known place to swim in Gauteng for decades"

"I have been swimming at Hillcrest for 50 years - I need the younger generation to have the same priveleges I did"

"This was where my foundation was laid as a swimmer"

"It is essential that Tshwane has at least one swimming pool where even the poorest swimmers can afford to train"

"This is a country where many people need to learn how to swim as a matter of survival - this is a skill that can save your life"

"Access to sporting infrastructure is a critical part of development and a fundamental children's right"

"We are a very strong swimming province, it is embarassing to have to rely on neighbouring provinces to host our swimmers for official events"

"Hillcrest gives everyone the opportunity to have a fair chance in training to swim!"

"Pretoria has the highest concentration of competitive swimmers in the country, we need a local pool to compete in!"

"Hillcrest Pool is a vital asset for a city that produces world class swimmers!" 

"Having an Olympic size pool open to the public at affordable rates is very rare and not something to just throw away"

"Hillcrest Pool is the ONLY Olympic size pool in Tshwane for our future Olympians to race in"

"Given the high rate of drownings and high costs of private pools, every public pool should be treated as a national treasure worthy of maintenance and development"

"I remember what a privelege it was to travel to Hillcrest to participate in Regional and National galas. It is an honour that every swimmer who puts in the effort, should experience at least once in their life"

"This year all our school galas were in small pools with no space for spectators - heartbreaking and unfair"

"The pool has been used for decades to ensure that professionals like first responders and lifeguards are properly trained and certified"

"Competitive swimmers need a place to practice diving from starting blocks - most indoor venues don't allow diving"

"Hillcrest Pool gives healthy cheap excercise to the underpriveleged"

"Hillcrest is the heart of Tshwane swimming, and we want it to keep being so for future generations"

Highlights From Signatory Comments

The comments from the petition signatories showcase what a diverse group Hillcrest Pool's support base is, from children learning to swim and competing in their first school gala, to Olympians and national champions setting new records, and everyone in between; a common thread linking all of these is the sentiment that all who had Hillcrest Pool feature as a positive and important figure in their swim journey, wish for it to be so for the next generation as well - the universal, unanimous desire for Hillcrest Pool to continue to be open to all who need it, and continue to fulfil it's role as a heritage site and landmark of South Africa's capital city.

What Hillcrest Pool Means To Us

Petition signatories, your passionate support for Hillcrest Pool is coming through loud and clear! 

Your heartfelt comments are showing what Hillcrest Pool means to you, and how important it is to re-open it as soon as possible.

Certain words show up over and over in your comments, driving home how treasured and beloved this pool is in our community:

"Crucial" "Indispensable" "Vital" "Integral" "Essential" "Pretoria Gem" "Precious Asset" "Heritage Site" "Community Hub" "Beacon of Hope"  "Inspiration for the Next Generation" "Iconic" "Landmark" "Legacy"

There is no other pool like it in Tshwane. Hillcrest Pool is one of a kind, and absolutely priceless to the swim community as a whole.

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