Even the cockatoos seemed to be saying goodbye to Manuka Pool manager John ''Tav'' Taverner yesterday. Ahead of his final day at the pool tomorrow, Mr Taverner was honoured by the ACT government for his more than 30-year association with the Canberra icon.
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As the cockatoos screeched overhead, Deputy Chief Minister Andrew Barr announced that the planned new cafe at the pool would be called Tav's.
''I think it's a really fitting tribute to a long-running family contribution to the city of Canberra and this facility,'' he said.
Mr Taverner's family has been involved with the pool for 65 years, his father Owen starting as a lifeguard in 1947 and then managing it from 1956 to 1990.
Mr Taverner has worked at the pool since 1980 and managed it for the past 22 years. He was moved by the gesture of having the cafe named for his family.
''It's such an honour,'' he said. ''We're just overwhelmed by the outpouring of goodwill from southside, Canberra generally. I'm sure I speak for my dad - we're just doing our job, a job we love.''
Tenders for a new manager will be called next month, with Mr Barr acknowledging there were big shoes to fill.
''Certainly it's a very hard act to follow,'' he said. ''We will go out to the marketplace and seek expressions of interest. I think undoubtedly anyone who comes in to take over management responsibilities can be confident they're inheriting a fantastic facility and much-loved by the people of Canberra and particularly the people of the inner-south. And there will be a viable business here into the future.''
The cafe, costing almost $350,000, is being financed from the government's pools improvement program. The project managers are Binutti Constructions.
Merv Knowles, a former trade commissioner to Greece, is a member of the pool's Conehead Society, the early-morning swimmers. Mr Knowles, 89, has been swimming at the pool for 80 years and appreciated the effort of the Taverners.
''We got a facility that's seen the stretch of time and survived with the help of the Taverners,'' he said. ''Their devotion to this area, the pool, the grounds is legendary.''
It's been an eventful last week for Mr Taverner who broke his leg in three places when he fell off his motorcycle outside the pool last Saturday. He is retiring ahead of his 60th birthday later this year.
There will be an open day at the pool tomorrow from 10am to 4pm so that people can say goodbye to Mr Taverner.
