Construction has started on a new amenities building at Malabar Ocean Pool, bringing toilets and change facilities to a popular coastal swimming spot that has had no on-site amenities since it was built, with the nearest public toilets currently located 700 metres away at Malabar Beach.
The building will include toilets, change cubicles, a regraded car park section and new landscaping. A planted roof has been incorporated into the design to keep the structure low-key and unobtrusive within the landscape. Construction is expected to take eight months, with the building due for completion in late January 2027.
The ocean pool itself remains open throughout the construction period.
A pool that has needed this for a long time
Malabar Ocean Pool is particularly valued by older people and those recovering from injuries, who use its rare stair-free access to the water. The lack of any on-site amenities has long been a friction point for those users, who have had to walk 700 metres to the facilities at Malabar Beach or forgo the pool entirely.
The stair-free access is genuinely uncommon among Sydney’s ocean pools. Most rockpool entries involve steps or ladders, making Malabar a specific destination for people who need gentler access and who have the most pressing need for nearby facilities.
A design shaped by the community
The amenities building went through a public consultation process before its final design was settled. Community feedback was clear: any building should be modest in size, located away from the pool deck, and should not impact views or sightlines for nearby properties.
The design reflects that feedback. The building sits unobtrusively within the landscape and the rooftop plantings help it blend into the surrounding vegetation rather than sitting above it as a visual intrusion.
It is the kind of outcome that tends to result when community feedback actually shapes the brief rather than simply appearing in a consultation summary.
What to expect during construction
There will be a temporary reduction in available parking near the pool and some construction noise and higher traffic levels during the eight-month build. Visitors planning to drive to the pool should allow extra time to find parking along Marine Drive or the surrounding streets.
The pool and Coastal Walkway remain accessible throughout. Further updates will be released at key stages during construction.
Malabar Ocean Pool is at the end of Marine Drive in Malabar, accessible from Maroubra via the Coastal Walkway or by car along Marine Drive.
Published 4-June-2026
