No plan to close town centre pool, says council

3 hours ago

Rob TriggShropshire political reporter

News image — The current building has four pools and was built during the 1960s

BBC A square building with an extension and entrance at the front with a sign reading: "Quarry Kitchen Cafe and Bar". The right hand side of the building is almost entirely covered in cream panelling, whilst the front has tall glass windows. — The current building has four pools and was built during the 1960s

There is no plan to close a Shrewsbury swimming pool, the councillor in charge of leisure at Shropshire Council says.

The reassurance comes after The Quarry Swimming and Fitness Centre has been deemed "end of life" by the authority for a number of years, leaving residents concerned about its future.

But Liberal Democrat James Owen told a meeting on Wednesday the council was exploring options to invest in the building to reduce the risk of the pools "closing any time soon".

At the same meeting it was decided plans to build a competition and training pool at Shrewsbury Sports Village would be suspended, while the authority attempts to stabilise its troubled finances.

The £28.8m extension to the leisure centre at Sundorne is one of a number of projects that are being shelved because of the significant levels of government borrowing required to pay for them.

The Shropshire Amateur Swimming Association has recently expressed concern about the town possibly being without public swimming facilities, if the ageing Quarry site was to close before the new pools were to open.

A man with fair hair and beard, wearing a grey blazer and blue lanyard, standing in front of a white cladded building with a brick base — Councillor James Owen had previously described the proposed Sports Village extension as "a county-wide asset"

"This authority cannot currently afford the borrowing costs to extend the Sports Village," said Owen, portfolio holder for housing and leisure.

"For the scheme to progress, the council is likely to require a significant amount of the cost – if not all – to be funded by external grant funding, Community Infrastructure Levy receipts or community fundraising.

"Clearly the price tag makes that a steep hill to climb. However, anything is possible.

"We are also trying to make sure that we invest in the Quarry pool to try and reduce the risk of the building closing."

Shropshire Council/Roberts Limbrick A computer generated image showing a two-storey building, with cladded columns and large glass windows on the first floor. Cars in parking bays can be seen in the foreground. — Shropshire Council said in December that construction of the Sports Village would begin this spring and be completed by the end of 2027

Later in the meeting, the councillor in charge of finance, Roger Evans, said the authority would spend the next two years improving its financial sustainability, but would look to borrow money in future to pay for schemes that residents really want.

It means the Sports Village extension may likely be placed on hold until at least 2028, although the Capital Strategy report said "due diligence will be undertaken on the paused schemes" during the next financial year.

Leader Heather Kidd said the council would also carry out an "urgent asset review", to find out what land and buildings could be sold to generate much needed cash.

She said, despite its desperate need for additional funds, the process would not be "a fire sale" where people attempted to rip the council off "because it's vulnerable".