Eastern Beach Geelong
Waterfront Geelong's jewel is an art-deco swimming pool
and park complex off Ritchie Boulevard and Eastern Beach
Road. Built in the 1930s, the park and pools have become
City landmarks, drawing crowds for more than 60 years.
A recent upgrade of the huge sea bathing complex and youngsters'
pool, surrounding parkland and pavilions and fountain
has added to the area's popularity.
Geelong's famous Eastern Beach, just a short walk from
the city centre, is a hive of waterfront activity. The
vision of past city surveyor Ian McDonald, work began
in stages on the bayfront icon in the late 1920s. The
plan envisaged a large, promenade-surrounded shark-proof
sea pool, children's pool, landscaped parklands, rotundas,
fountain, kiosk and change rooms.
Visitors to Eastern Beach soon realise there's much
more on offer than a swim. The lawns, playground, pavilions,
restaurant, café and kiosk provide wide scope
for fun and enjoyment for all. You can walk around the
main pool promenade with Corio Bay and the city in the
background, have a picnic on the lawns or relax under
a tree. The possibilities are endless. And then there
are all the other attractions of Waterfront Geelong
to explore and enjoy.
Geelong is packed with places to go and things to do.
The city’s cultural precinct includes one of Australia’s
best regional art galleries and modern live performance
theatres. The waterfront is home to another major live
theatre, housed within the university’s city campus,
and a discovery centre that documents the local history
of one of the world’s largest car-makers. Sport,
too, figures high on the list, especially Aussie rules.
Football - Aussie rules style Geelong people like
their sport and football - the Aussie rules brand -
is king. The city is home to the Geelong Cats, one of
the founding teams of the national league, the AFL.
Tom Wills, co-founder of Aussie rules, established the
Geelong Football club in 1859. It is regarded as the
second-oldest club of any football code in the world.
The club’s HQ and home ground is at Kardinia Park,
South Geelong.
Geelong's favorite playground, historic Eastern Beach
dates back to the late 1920's when Geelong's City Surveyor
Ian McDonald started planning what was to become Geelong's
number one icon. Eastern Beach was finally completed
in the late 1930' and soon become the people's playground.
Eastern Beach has a large shark proof promenade, a
children's pool and beautiful landscape park with plenty
of soft green grass, fountains and some lovely federation
style buildings including rotundas, change rooms and
a kiosk, restaurant.
Over the last few years Eastern Beach has undergone
a major facelift turning it back to the splendor it
was earlier last century. It became the first piece
of our new waterfront showcase to be completed.
Some 70 years on Eastern Beach is still one of the
cities most popular destinations, whether it be to enjoy
the water and sun over the summer months or for the
relaxing picnics and activities over the cooler months.
|
