A panel of city
councillors have decreed that a £1 million rebuild of the Gayton
swimming pool in Derby should not go ahead, saying that the replacement
pool was "not justified". The
pool was closed just last year by the council who argued that the money
that would be required to fully repair the structure would just "paper
over the cracks"
and a rebuild would be too costly. Gayton Community Association took
umbridge to this and took the council to court, claiming its leasehold
agreement meant the
authority had to maintain the pool building properly. Chairman of the commission, Labour councillor Alan Graves, said £1 million was too much to spend on the project.
"When
the
demonstrators against the closure of Gayton pool first campaigned,
they said it would cost about only £70,000 to repair the building," he
added. "Then
the cost rose to about £150,000 but it was all a small amount. Those
campaigners included Liberal Democrats who are now in power. In July,
after the court case, they said it would cost £600,000 and now they say
£1m to replace the whole thing. The court order doesn't require a
rebuild and, for the number of people who it affects, we don't think
that is needed."
Community
association
chairman Chris Harrington said "I would like a decision
made pretty quickly so we can get the pool up and running. A
rebuild would seem a move in the right direction because it is looking
towards the future to try to secure swimming, not just in the immediate
area but for all of Derby, for around 25 years. £1m is a lot of money
but, if the council had done its duty properly and maintained the
building, it would not be facing that. It is up to the council to
debate whether it is a complete rebuild that's needed or just papering
over the cracks for now. Whatever they decide, the bottom line is that
the community wants the pool up and running as soon as possible." | 