The water basin covers 37.6 hectares (96 acres) and the entrance at the western end is 61 metres wide.
At its greatest extent it accommodated 21 berths, although this has been substantially reduced as the land area has been redeveloped for the Docklands commercial and residential towers.
It was used as a dance venue, events, functions and entertainment[3] until August 2019 when it was declared unsafe.
In January 2020 it was shut down indefinitely because it would take "tens of millions of dollars" to rebuild to a safe standard.
The oldest, dating from 1913, were along the eastern edge and were purported to have been dismantled for future restoration of the central pier sheds, two of which survive.