Four Upper Hutt kids are literally living the highlife thanks to a new treehouse built by their father from timber recycled from the old Naenae Pool.

After the Naenae Pool closed for refurbishment, material that would otherwise have gone to the landfill was offered free to those who wanted it.

Among them were parents Joel and Tanya Pikari who, after returning from a 12-year stint living in the Middle East, got their hands on some old timber seating.

Joel, a former builder now working in project management, grew up in Naenae and had plenty of fond memories from days spent at the pool.

"I spent my weekends transforming the timber into a treehouse at our Upper Hutt home. Our sons - aged 4, 6, 8, and 10 just love having sleepovers there, making pulley systems and creating their own fun among the bush in their very own treehouse.

"It was a project that enabled me to recapture my childhood memories from days spent at the Naenae pool while also creating new memories for my own family."

Tanya says it was made all the better knowing the treehouse was made from material that would otherwise have gone to landfill.

"You could say that the timber’s gone to the treetops, so in a way it’s been upcycled."

Mayor Campbell Barry says it’s wonderful to see how material rescued from the Naenae Pool is being transformed with a new purpose.

"There is now a little piece of Naenae Pool in Upper Hutt that will bring joy to people in a way that would never have been thought of when the pool first opened in 1956."

The new Naenae Pool and Fitness complex is being built with sustainability in mind, in line with Hutt City Council’s target to be carbon-zero by 2050.

Ninety per cent of material from the demolition of the old pool and the community hall was saved from going to landfill, including 13,162 tonnes of scrap metal and concrete which was crushed for use as backfill on the site.

Demolition experts McMahon Services won the Asbestos or Demo Best Practice Project over $1 million at the 2022 NZDAA Demolition & Asbestos Awards for their work on the demolition, which demonstrated industry best practice for safety and sustainability.

Naenae Pool and Fitness Centre secured co-funding of $27 million from the Government’s Infrastructure Reference Group (IRG) fund, managed by Crown Infrastructure Partners.

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