Perth’s new PH2O swimming pool and leisure centre WILL be built at Thimblerow with a water play area and indoor flumes.
Councillors approved a £74 million revised plan for the city centre site on Wednesday.
It’s part of a £97m package that includes a £13.2m investment in the public swimming baths in Crieff and Kinross and £10m to convert Bell’s Sports Centre into an unheated venue suitable for sports, concerts and other events.
Capability Scotland will also move its Upper Springland services for 100 adults with severe and complex needs to the site of the old Perth Leisure Pool after it is demolished.
Around 30 campaigners staged a demonstration against the plans outside the council chambers.
Others appealed directly to councillors to abandon the controversial Thimblerow location during the meeting, in favour of re-developing at the current Perth Pool site.
Dave Munro of the Perth and Kinross Community Sports Network (PKCSN) accused the council of “civic vandalism”.
And he said it had unleashed “a volcano of venom while only offering a dilution of what we have”.
The network represents 14 local groups.
They had urged the council to reopen Bell’s for indoor sports and build PH2O at Glover Street, where Perth Leisure Pool and the Dewars Centre are currently based.
But the meeting heard Bell’s Sports Centre’s flood risk makes it uninsurable as an indoor venue.
And building at Thimblerow will allow the council to keep the Perth Leisure Pool open until the new one is ready.
Council says new Perth pool and leisure centre reflects actual demand
A new PH2O leisure centre has been on the cards for Perth since 2014.
The initial goal was to include an ice rink, swimming pool, gymnasium and outdoor climbing wall.
But the project was mothballed in 2023 due to rising costs.
And when fresh plans for the site of the Thimblerow car park emerged last year, they did not include leisure water an ice rink or indoor bowls.
That sparked anger, with critics labelling the leisure centre a “watered down” version of what Perth had been promised.
Councillors voted 20-18 to approve a £61m PH2O at Thimblerow last September.
But they also asked officers to go back to the drawing board and find a way to include leisure water.
Perth pool costs rose £5m as council reconsidered
The option chosen on Wednesday was the costliest of the new designs put to councillors.
In addition to a 430 square metre leisure water area with flumes, this three-storey PH2O will also feature an eight-lane swimming pool, teaching pool, holiday and weekend inflatables in the main pool, an indoor play area, games hall, gym, studios, and cafe.
Councillors were assured the design reflects actual demand for sports and leisure facilities in Perth.
And they were reminded the base case for Thimblerow has already risen by £5m in the nine months since it was agreed.
The Conservative group proposed an amendment that would have seen the council revert to Glover Street and re-examine campaigners’ demands for Bell’s.
There followed a lengthy discussion, which included a vote on how the vote should be carried out.
However, the SNP administration’s PH2O plans were eventually approved by 24 votes to 15.
Council leader Grant Laing said it is a plan that will “shape the future of leisure, wellbeing and community life across Perth and Kinross for decades to come”.
Council insists Thimblerow offers benefits over Perth Leisure Pool site
The meeting also heard from Bobby Brian, whose petition urging the council to keep Perth Leisure Pool at Glover Street gained more than 2,000 signatures.
He told councillors the Thimblerow site was “inadequate and short-sighted”.
Willie Wilson, of Perth Civic Trust, spoke in favour of the Glover Street pool option and the return of Bell’s for indoor sports.
And he argued the Thimblerow plans were out of character with the surrounding area.
The meeting heard Bell’s Sports Centre’s location rules out the campaigners’ demands.
It had flooded repeatedly due to surface water before the October 2023 floodgates fiasco which forced its closure.
The covered outdoor sports and event space plan will allow the council to retain its B-listed dome.
The Thimblerow site has been widely derided.
But the council says building there, rather than at Glover Street, will encourage families into Perth city centre, boosting shops and businesses.
Deputy leader Eric Drysdale said this was more important than ever in the wake of Saturday’s fatal fire.
Several businesses have been forced to close and others are facing months of disruption while the building is demolished.
The council is also continuing discussions with Scottish Curling which could see the sports body take over the running of the Dewars Centre next door to Perth Leisure Pool, retaining the sport in the city.
The Courier has been campaigning for an ambitious new leisure complex in Perth that caters for all sports, including leisure swimming and curling.
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