Alexandrina Council has washed its hands of the swimming pontoon in Horseshoe Bay, handing over responsibility for the facility to the Port Elliot community.

The decision was made at the council meeting on Monday 16 December with the following resolutions:

• That Council supports the reintroduction of the pontoon to Horseshoe Bay.
• That the pontoon is gifted to the community to be installed by other persons, not Council.

The pontoon has been missing from the bay since mid-September, when it was damaged and washed ashore in a storm.

“Council knows that the swimming pontoon in our beautiful Horseshoe Bay at Port Elliot is well-loved by the community and visitors. We have a responsibility to consider the risks, public liability, maintenance obligations and the financial impacts to our whole community,” Mayor Keith Parkes says.

“Council received an update on our previous resolution in November to bring the pontoon back this summer, and to keep it there year-round - pending approval from the Department for Infrastructure and Transport (DIT), confirmation we can secure insurance, and a report on final costs coming back to Council.

“We have executed a Heads of Agreement with DIT to allow the pontoon to be moored in the bay with a licence in the process of being drawn up. That licence requires the licensee – Council - to be covered by Council’s Mutual Liability Scheme or by $300m public liability.

“We were able to talk to our insurers about their conditions for coverage and negotiate for some less onerous inspection requirements and Council did speak to community organisations and received support to reduce some inspection costs with volunteer assistance on weekends and public holidays.

“However, to meet the conditions laid down by our insurer, there are still costs involved with daily inspections using drones by our staff and monthly boat inspections.

“Plus, there is the cost of bringing the pontoon out of the water every year for maintenance and then mooring and underwater inspections.

“The cost to meet management requirements for the remainder of this financial year was $58,853, to provide for labour, specialised contractors and maintenance operational costs.

“The cost to meet the minimum compliance requirements to put the pontoon back for the summer period to April only was estimated at $36,785.

“Council still believes the requirements of our insurers are still cost-prohibitive for our community.

“We will continue to have further discussions with our insurers about this issue.

“We know that Alexandrina is not the only coastal council grappling with the insurance risk of pontoons, and we are advised that the South Australian Coastal Councils Alliance is advocating on behalf of Councils across the State for practical requirements for managing pontoons and coastal assets for the sector.

“We are hoping that the Alliance and the LGA can come to an agreement that makes it affordable for our communities to have these popular assets.

“At this point, Council has concerns about the significant cost to ratepayers and how we need to manage the risk and liability of the pontoon.

“Last night Council Members resolved to support the reintroduction of the pontoon to Horseshoe Bay and to gift it back to the community.

“Council welcomes discussions with prospective community groups. Come and talk to us so we can work through a solution together.”

The pontoon had been moored in Horseshoe Bay since 2012, installed by the community without reference to the council. 

In 2013 the council permitted Port Elliot Surf Life Saving Club to take ownership of the pontoon, provided it agreed to undertake maintenance, daily visual inspections and biannual underwater inspections by appropriately certified divers. 

Initially in the bay only during the summer months, in 2018 the club gained council permission to keep the pontoon in the water all year round.

In August 2024 the club advised that members could no longer meet maintenance and inspection requirements, and management of the structure was given back to the council.