The controversial Thimblerow leisure centre in Perth will be decided again today, after a huge public backlash threw the plan into chaos.
In September, councillors narrowly approved the plans, 20 votes to 18, to build the long-awaited PH2O project on the most popular car park in the city.
The watered-down facility will not have a dedicated leisure pool or ice-rink and has been criticised by swimming clubs and indoor sports teams.
This sparked a petition against the plans, signed by more than 2,300 people, which has brought the proposal back before the council.
Previously, we have detailed how a £25m flagship complex first mooted in 2014 was diluted down to a fraction of that offer by January 2024.
Now we look at everything else you need to know as councillors once again get ready to decide on the facility today (Wednesday).
The Courier believes they should Say NO to Thimblerow.
The leisure swimming issue
In January 2024, elected members rejected a plan for Glover Street that would see PH20 built without leisure swimming or ice rink facilities.
Council officers were given until August to draw up new proposals inclusive of those provisions.
However the resulting Thimblerow plan still lacks a dedicated leisure pool or ice rink.
The Courier carried out our own public consultation where hundreds of respondents placed leisure swimming as the main activity they wanted at a new facility.
We also discovered that Perth already has the lowest number of pool hours available for leisure swimmers in all cities across Tayside, Fife and Stirling.
A draft timetable of how the new centre could operate shows that children’s leisure activities would be cut by 30 hours a week.
It would also reduce the number of days these activities are available from seven to two.
Bell’s Sports Centre and car parking
Parking spaces are an issue with the new centre set to be built on Thimblerow, home to 200 spaces.
The latest survey carried out by the local authority shows that Thimblerow is the joint most popular car park in the city as at near 90% capacity at peak times.
The council’s overall leisure centre masterplan, including building 150 new homes at Glover Street, would see Perth lose 335 spaces.
The local authority have attempted to say they are combating this by purchasing Kinnoull Street multi-storey.
The problem with this argument is that Kinnoull Street multi-storey already exists and is available to the public.
Another issue is Bell’s Sports Centre.
A dozen indoor sports clubs have joined forces in a fight for the North Inch complex to be returned to its former glory, to what it was like before the flooding of 2023.
They believe the facilities being offered at Thimblerow are a step down from what was available at Bell’s.
A petition already signed by nearly 2,800 people supports them in their ask.
Lack of consultation and people against it
An ongoing theme with Thimblerow is the lack of consultation over plans.
As The Courier revealed on Tuesday, not even the board of Live Active Leisure was asked for their opinion, according to its former chairman.
Perth City Swim Club has spoken out against the plans and told The Courier it was never asked for input while the indoor sports clubs say the same thing about Bell’s and PH2O.
There was no public consultation carried out by Perth and Kinross Council either.
The local authority argues that the current price of Thimblerow is £61m while a new build at Glover Street is estimated at £105m.
It also said the current plan will prevent a break in service for swimmers or curlers while the facility is built.
The full council meeting is expected to begin at 9.30am on Wednesday with PH2O high on the agenda.
Conversation