WHEN IS THE IVORY PARK SWIMMING POOL OPENING?
The Ivory Park Swimming Pool remains closed despite the JDA saying the project is 100% complete and handed over, while the City’s Community Development Department says practical completion and handover are still outstanding.
Almost a year later, Ivory Park swimming pool is still not open as City gives different answers.
The long-awaited Ivory Park Swimming Pool remains closed to the public almost a year after the Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) announced that the facility was “a step closer to opening its doors”.
The latest developments have raised further questions about the project after two City of Johannesburg entities gave conflicting accounts of whether the facility has reached completion and whether it has formally been handed over to the City.
In a written response to KAE News dated 15 July 2026, the JDA said the construction project is 100% complete, that practical completion has been achieved, and that the facility has been formally handed over to the City’s Community Development Department.
The JDA also confirmed that a Certificate of Occupancy (CO) had been secured, which it said paved the way for the facility to open. According to the agency, the only remaining operational activity was the final chlorination and balancing of the pool water ahead of the public launch.
However, the City’s Community Development Department has provided a markedly different account.
In its response to KAE News, the department said that while the JDA had completed the construction phase, the project had not yet reached practical completion and had not been formally handed over to the City.
The department said that before the swimming pool could open, the Sport and Recreation Directorate still needed to undertake comprehensive commissioning processes. These include testing mechanical and electrical systems, verifying that the facility is fully operational with technical specialists, and finalising staffing, security arrangements and testing of the water filtration and supply systems.
The department said the Ivory Park Swimming Pool is expected to open during the City’s annual public swimming pool season, which runs from 1 September to 31 March, subject to the successful completion of all operational readiness requirements.
A PROJECT THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE NEAR OPENING
The conflicting accounts come almost a year after the JDA’s September 2025 announcement that the project was nearing completion.
According to the JDA’s latest response, one of the major factors affecting the timeline was the need to relocate residents who had settled on a service servitude where the main sewer connection needed to be installed.
The agency said the consultation and relocation process took more than six months and included the construction of temporary accommodation for affected families and discussions regarding permanent housing.
NO OPENING DATE YET
The biggest question for residents remains: When can they actually swim?
The Community Development Department has not provided a specific opening date.
Instead, it said the facility is expected to open during the 2026/27 swimming season, which runs from September 2026 to March 2027, provided all operational readiness requirements are successfully completed.
For residents who have watched the project take years to reach this point, another open-ended timeline is likely to be frustrating.
The swimming pool complex is intended to provide a major recreational and sporting facility for Ivory Park and surrounding communities.
The facility includes an Olympic-style swimming pool, splash pool, grandstand seating and environmentally friendly features including solar water heating, water harvesting, grey-water recycling and waterless toilets.
At the time of publication, KAE News had not received a further response reconciling the two positions.
For residents, however, the issue goes beyond terminology.
After years of waiting and repeated assurances that the facility was nearing completion, the community wants a clear answer on when the doors will finally open!
The JDA says the project is complete and handed over.
The Community Development Department says it has not yet reached practical completion or been formally handed over.
Until those positions are reconciled and the City provides a firm opening date, Ivory Park residents remain waiting for a facility that was intended to serve their community.
The pool was initially supposed to open in November 2017 and has cost taxpayers more than R42 million!
