Bell’s Sports Centre bosses are abandoning the Perth venue’s gym after it was trashed by flooding last year.
Live Active Leisure has told users it is moving the Bell’s fitness gear to the Dewars Centre.
The move means indoor bowling at the Dewars Centre will cease at the end of the current playing season to make way for the gym.
It’s six months since the Bell’s centre was swamped after the Perth floodgates were left open during torrential rain.
And it comes as both venues are facing the threat of closure.
The Bell’s Centre, Dewars Centre and Perth Leisure Pool are all slated for the axe.
Perth and Kinross Council bosses want to scrap the three loss-making venues and replace them with a single new sports centre.
The Courier has seen a letter sent to Bell’s gym users.
It makes reference to the “catastrophic flooding” and acknowledges how frustrating the last few months have been.
However, it also expresses excitement at the Dewars move, and says the new arrangement will be better than before.
The message states: “This development will see the Strathearn Hall at Dewars transformed into a 100+ station fitness gym with a comprehensive range of cardio, resistance, strength, and functional training equipment which we are confident will replicate, if not better, our previous offering at Bell’s Sports Centre that was proving extremely popular prior to the flooding.”
It goes on: “We hope to have these facilities operational by the summer of this year and the same dedicated instructor team are looking forward to welcoming you to our new facilities.”
Bell’s Sports Centre ‘destination gym’ dreams short-lived
Live Active Leisure previously transferred all of its fitness activities from Perth’s Rodney Pavilion to Bell’s in 2022.
The move generated strong opposition from locals.
At the time Live Active Leisure said the intention was to create a “destination gym” at Bell’s.
However, the gym and fitness class programme has been curtailed since the venue was flooded last autumn.
The North Inch was deluged after the nearby flood gates were left open on the weekend of October 7-8.
The cost of repairing the damage to the Bell’s Sports Centre has been put at around £2 million.
Live Active Leisure told The Courier it had not taken the decision lightly.
But the organisation said the flooding had forced its hand.
Bowling sacrificed to make way for Bell’s Sports Centre gym kit
A Live Active Leisure spokesperson said: “Due in part, to the continuing uninsured and unmitigated risk of further flooding events, we have taken an operational decision to transfer the fitness gym and studios from Bell’s Sports Centre to Dewars Centre.
“This will require the conversion of the Strathearn Hall, where bowls is currently played, and some upstairs meeting rooms. And unfortunately, this will mean that indoor bowls will cease at the end of the current playing season.”
The spokesperson added: “This is not a decision that our board have taken lightly, and we are fully aware of the impact on those that currently use Dewars.
“However, this will protect a vital income stream for Live Active Leisure and reinstate the key fitness services used by approximately 7,000 individuals.”
The statement concluded: “We remain committed to providing opportunities for everyone to lead an active life, and our focus is now on what alternative activities or support we can offer those impacted by this decision”.
What now for city sports centres?
Perth and Kinross Council was widely criticised for failing to protect Bell’s Sports Centre and surrounding residential properties from flooding last October.
And a controversial plan to close Bell’s, the Dewars Centre and Perth Leisure Pool emerged the following month.
The three venues are all more than 30 years old, and are running at a loss of around £1.6 million a year.
The council intends to replace them with a scaled-back version of the mothballed PH2O Perth sports centre.
And the public have been assured the new venue will feature an ice rink and leisure swimming after early reports suggested they would not be included.
Former footballer Murray McDowell recently revealed a plan to re-open a gym at the Rodney Pavilion.
The building was put on the market by Perth and Kinross Council and the property sub-committee will decide on a preferred bidder shortly.
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