The Dickson Pool forecourt is an area of public land in front of the Dickson Pool, which is located on Cowper Street, Dickson, opposite the shops.

In 2018 government engaged with the community on the planning for urban renewal of Section 72 Dickson. A strong message from the community throughout the engagement was that they wanted to see the pool forecourt improved.

In early November 2019, 11 mature deciduous trees were transplanted from a block within Section 72 Dickson (identified for future development ) to the Dickson Pool forecourt and a playground near Lyneham wetlands.
The ACT Government engaged an experienced arborist to prepare and relocate the trees. This involved comprehensive root zone management.
An experienced and specialist arborist will oversee the health of the transplanted trees over the next 12 months.
Management of the trees includes regular monitoring, watering and fertilising.
An automatic irrigation watering system has been installed to keep the trees watered. The system is regularly monitored by the arborist and ACT Government staff.
The trees will be in a period of shock over the first few months from the transplanting and some may lose their leaves. This is normal and the trees can survive.
Leaf drop and thinning of canopies due to the transplant process is to be expected and shows that the trees are reacting to the relocation process and climate conditions.

The trial will be in place over the summer swim season, until mid-March 2020, though some of the improvements will be permanent, such as the trees.

During our engagement, community suggestions for improvements to the pool forecourt included providing more shade, seating, bike parking, artwork, places for young people to meet and water features.

Yes. You can have your say on how the improvements are working and on the development of a permanent upgrade works here in the future. We will also work closely with the Dickson Aquatic Centre and key stakeholders on the future design.

Community feedback received during the trial will inform a permanent design for the pool forecourt. The final design for the pool will be made publicly available with a consultation report. The construction for permanent improvements will be guided by future budget processes.