Saturday, September 01, 2007
Its Redcar baths all over again...
Today I telephoned the Redcar Leisure Centre to enquire about booking the Coatham Bowl sometime in December this year. The person who answered the phone said that it was more or less fully booked at the time that I wanted it. This person then went on to ask me how the campaign was going and what was happening?
So I gave them as brief an update as I could. The person that I spoke to then told me that there had been people looking round the bowl and leisure centre who were putting tenders in to knock it down.I was informed that Persimmon had sent them and that they wanted it down by the first few months of next year.
I was absolutely outraged! This company, with no 106 agreement in place tying them to providing any leisure facilities at all, are now trying to rush the council into demolishing our Bowl and leisure centre and there are absolutely no plans, or money to replace it! Remember, the councils "people, pride and passion" magazine, has already stated that the building of the 'leisure' has been moved back to phase two of the development which isnt due to begin until June 2009 at least! So we will be without our leisure centre and Dance floor until at least then.
This is just absolute sheer bloody mindedness by the council and Persimmon who,coincidentally, haven't even bought the land yet! They have to be stopped now. They are carrying on like everything is just fine, regardless of all the problems and lies and underhandedness surrounding this scheme and despite the scheme being described as botched and tainted by our MP and Labour leader of the council.
They want to demolish our last leisure amenity in this town and just like with our baths, they have no plans to replace it for some time to come. If Persimmon homes were going to be building a new leisure centre/pool then it wouldn't have been moved back to phase two, it would still be in phase one. If the council had any money to build it, then it would still be in phase one not phase two.The fact is Persimmon arent building it and the council havent got the funding and that's why its been moved back to phase two.
In 1997 when our baths was demolished, we were promised a new baths within two years of it being demolished. TEN YEARS ON and we still have no pool! The thing is, when BORROWING the money to finance the building of a baths has been the councils intention for some time, why haven't we had one built long before now? We have been in this position before with our baths and we cannot let this to happen again now with our leisure centre, dance floor and bowl.
This has to be stopped.
So I gave them as brief an update as I could. The person that I spoke to then told me that there had been people looking round the bowl and leisure centre who were putting tenders in to knock it down.I was informed that Persimmon had sent them and that they wanted it down by the first few months of next year.
I was absolutely outraged! This company, with no 106 agreement in place tying them to providing any leisure facilities at all, are now trying to rush the council into demolishing our Bowl and leisure centre and there are absolutely no plans, or money to replace it! Remember, the councils "people, pride and passion" magazine, has already stated that the building of the 'leisure' has been moved back to phase two of the development which isnt due to begin until June 2009 at least! So we will be without our leisure centre and Dance floor until at least then.
This is just absolute sheer bloody mindedness by the council and Persimmon who,coincidentally, haven't even bought the land yet! They have to be stopped now. They are carrying on like everything is just fine, regardless of all the problems and lies and underhandedness surrounding this scheme and despite the scheme being described as botched and tainted by our MP and Labour leader of the council.
They want to demolish our last leisure amenity in this town and just like with our baths, they have no plans to replace it for some time to come. If Persimmon homes were going to be building a new leisure centre/pool then it wouldn't have been moved back to phase two, it would still be in phase one. If the council had any money to build it, then it would still be in phase one not phase two.The fact is Persimmon arent building it and the council havent got the funding and that's why its been moved back to phase two.
In 1997 when our baths was demolished, we were promised a new baths within two years of it being demolished. TEN YEARS ON and we still have no pool! The thing is, when BORROWING the money to finance the building of a baths has been the councils intention for some time, why haven't we had one built long before now? We have been in this position before with our baths and we cannot let this to happen again now with our leisure centre, dance floor and bowl.
This has to be stopped.
// posted by Chris McGlade @ 9:40 AM 
