The future of Perth’s three leading sports venues is in doubt following a sweeping review of leisure and culture services.
Council bosses say Perth Leisure Pool, Dewars Centre and Bell’s Sports Centre could all be located on a single site.
The three venues are all more than 30 years old, and are running at a loss of around £1.6 million a year.
Consultants say the move would help to save millions of pounds in future spending.
Perth and Kinross councillors will consider the proposal when the full council meets next week.
It comes after councillors were told last week that the bill for repairing damage to Bell’s Sports Centre is likely to amount to £2 million.
The venue flooded at the beginning of October after the floodgates on the North Inch were left open during a weekend of heavy rain.
Perth sports centres proposal part of wider review
A number of other cost-cutting measures are also being put forward.
These include disposing of the Fergusson Gallery and William Soutar House in Perth.
Library services could be “consolidated” to community campuses and the AK Bell Library.
And communities could be given more support to take on the running of community leisure venues themselves.
The recommendation follows a review of Perth and Kinross Council’s three arms length external organisations.
Live Active Leisure, which runs the sports centres, Perth Theatre and Concert
Hall and Culture Perth and Kinross have a combined annual expenditure of more than £18 million.
But consultants Glasgow Audit found the three ALEOs could be working much more closely together.
Their report also proposes a review of the management structure and a streamlining of departments where work is currently being duplicated.
There is no figure on likely job losses at present.
‘Do nothing’ scenario will cost council £20M
Councillors will discuss a report by Fiona Robertson, head of culture and community services.
In it, she writes: “The most significant revenue pressure is pay, followed by rising
energy and running costs of buildings.”
The report says the three AELOs have 35 properties between them. And these will require £20 million in spending over the next five years.
All but three are owned by the council.
The others – Perth Leisure Pool, Dewars Centre and Bell’s Sports Centre – are owned by Live Active Leisure.
Ms Robertson says: “There are challenges in relation to the future affordability of
maintaining three major sports venues in Perth.
“The combined operating deficits of Perth Leisure Pool, Dewars Centre and Bell’s is currently £1.6M pa, projected to rise in coming years.
“These properties are all over 30 years old and increasingly at risk of unplanned failures, including increased flood risk as at PLP (Perth Leisure Pool) and Bell’s in 2020 and 2023.”
She says a “do nothing scenario” would require the council to spend an estimated £20M over the next five years to maintain all 35 current properties.
She goes on: “Taking the factors outlined above into account, the current ALEO property portfolio is unaffordable, based on current and likely future financial resources versus cost pressures and changing customer/audience needs.”
The full council will consider the report when it meets on Wednesday morning.
Conversation