As gyms and fitness clubs occupy an increasing number of town centre properties, Pembrokeshire County Council has made the decision to invest a total of £1.4 million into the refurbishment of Tenby Leisure Centre.
The refurbishment culminates the local authority’s 10 year £20 million leisure facilities strategy which was launched to encourage local people to become more active, and has seen the creation of two new leisure centres in Fishguard and Haverfordwest.
Local MP Simon Hart called the announcement “wonderful news for both Tenby and south Pembrokeshire”, continuing; “It’s great to get some positive news about council spending.
“Judging by the number of people I see out running and cycling on the roads at the weekends, I think it’s fair to say that Pembrokeshire is in the grip of exercise fever, which is fantastic.
“We already have the ideal scenery and countryside for training, so it will be great to have indoor facilities to match.”
Under the plans for the upgraded centre, a new fitness suite and café will be added to the existing property while the foyer and dry side facilities will undergo an extensive makeover. While the centre will remain open to the public throughout the project, a temporary new entrance will be erected in order to allow contractors to work on the foyer area undisturbed.
According to official estimates released by the council, the work will take around one year to complete. Work will begin shortly, with the realignment of the driveway entrance to the site – following which the work on the actual centre will begin in earnest.
Tenby Leisure Centre is the third facility of its kind to be upgraded in Pembrokeshire under the council’s scheme. Other projects in Milford Haven and Pembroke were completed previously and have received a good reception from the public.
Although Pembrokeshire County Council has spent extensively on the project, it has saved costs by utilising its own team of in-house architects to design the new look for the site. Furthermore, it has contributed to the local economy by engaging local contractors WJG Evans which will help the local authority to meet its regional employment targets.
Cabinet member for sport and leisure, Councillor Elwyn Morse, believes that the refurbished facility will play an instrumental role in keeping local residents focused on their health.
He says; “One way to encourage people to be active is to provide them with top class facilities.
“We hope that the upgrade at Tenby will inspire people to take up more sport and physical activity.”
Do you think council-operated leisure centres are a good source of revenue for local authorities, or do you think more money could be made by leasing the property to a commercial gym operator such as PureGym or LA Fitness?
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