General News
26 September, 2025
Locals ready for outdoor pool garage sale
Sian Green is one of many locals with pre-loved items up for grabs as she takes part in the town-wide garage sale to raise awareness for the Maryborough outdoor pool’s future.
Ms Green remembers the atmosphere in town when taking her young family to the outdoor pool in the months after moving to Maryborough.
“We could walk there or ride our bikes, the kids would enjoy having a snack at the pool canteen. Having somewhere locally that we could go for a cool off that was accessible, and we weren’t having to use cars to travel to, was really beneficial,” she said.
“I only moved to Maryborough in 2021, and I definitely remember spending time in summer there in 2022 with my two boys who were nine and six — it was just a great place to go.”
Not long after that summer, the pool closed upon reaching its ‘end of life stage’, and is now expected to cost over $10 million to reopen.
Since then, the Friends of the Maryborough Outdoor Pool Precinct Inc (FOMOP) has formed a community advocacy group and recently planned a town garage sale to build awareness throughout the community.
For the Green family, the Maryborough Pool was a social space and a place where her young family could see mates and learn to swim.
“It’s such a good community aspect. You meet other people at the pool. The social aspect of the pool is really important for a small rural community,” Ms Green said.
“One of my fondest memories was one weekend, there was a basketball competition, it was shoulder to shoulder at the pool. There were people coming from various basketball clubs to Maryborough for the weekend, and it was packed.
“We struggled to get a spot on the grass. They are good memories, it’s a good vibe with music pumping and kids splashing.”
Ms Green will be taking part in the whole town garage sale to support FOMOP’s efforts.
“I wanted to hopefully get more people behind the cause and what the FOMOP is doing,” she said.
“I know people who come to Maryborough to go op-shopping, so this is a draw card. People will go, ‘oh, there’s a town-wide garage sale, let's make a weekend of it’.
“Slowly, more people will hear about it and even though we live in a digital age, word of mouth travels fast, so why not?
“The good thing, of course, is also de-cluttering. So it was a really good thing to get on board.”
Ms Green’s children have grown out of many of their clothes and toys, but are still hoping to also earn some pocket money from taking part in a big cause.
“We’ve got some footy boots, a lot of clothes from brands like Witchery, Esprit, Country Road, plenty of baby items, kitchen items, crockery, tools, lawn mowers, books, Hot Wheels and other toys like Nerf guns. Baby clothes will be fill a bag for five dollars,” Ms Green said.
There will be endless other items around town up for grabs, with numerous other locals throwing in their support.
The Maryborough Townwide Garage Sale will take place on Saturday, October 11, from 7.30 am until 12 pm.
The day will start at Maryborough Outdoor Pool with coffee and breakfast available on-site, and maps provided to showcase where garage sales are.
Those interested in clearing items they no longer need, in support of a major local cause, or who are simply passionate about Maryborough having its outdoor pool again, are urged to register their garage sale through the poster’s QR code seen around town, via hard copy at participating businesses such as Maryborough Professionals, or online.