Well I think that this is a rather selective revision of history.

First, option one was entirely supported by their capital funding (cash that they have) without any receipt from housing.
Second, the other options were only relying on receipts from housing for a relatively small percentage of their budget and it is entirely possible that had receipts from housing failed to materialize the sum could have been found in the Council budget or borrowed through prudential borrowing.
Third, Lewisham Council recently built a rather good pool in Deptford, completely out of capital funding that was made to appear almost magically out of a sudden "previously unidentified underspending" of a few millions, just as an example of how money can be found sometimes if there is the will.

I think that the commitment of Lewisham Council to build the new pool could not have been clearer, they wanted to get rid of an old building that they didn't want to maintain and make space for a few houses to help them with their housing targets. They made clear that they would have built a new pool and committed a large sum. That was their agenda, you may disagree with it but it's not any absolute evil.

I think that it is quite possible that by now works would have started on the new pool, and this becasue we're only just over a year away from election and failing to do so would have meant a much bigger risk of the end of the Labour administration of Lewisham than the current one. Lewisham would have looked for a developer for the housing part and failing to find one the site would have stayed empty until either the market picks up again, whenever that is, or a publicly funded social development is built.

With the current situation there will be financial hurdles to face and possibly compromises will have to made and let's hope for the best. I am still convinced that the listing of Louise House was not a well thought decision really.