A popular if far from pretty Dundee landmark will soon be gone to make way for a building that will project the city on to the international stage.
The site of the old Olympia swimming pool is needed for the V&A, the centrepiece of the £1 billion waterfront regeneration on which the city’s economic hopes are pinned.
The stark concrete structure cast an ugly shadow and won no praise for its architecture but its demise is not without a tinge of sadness.
For 40 years it echoed to the sound of happy swimmers but now it is swamped in an eerie silence as demolishers prepare for its removal.
Gallery: One last look around the old Olympia swimming pool
Murals of cheerful dolphins that amused generations of children now look down on an empty scene as workmen extract all fittings.
The main pool, revamped in the 1980s with flume and river-effect sections, is now a bare cavern while the training pool is a fading reflection of the busy scene where swimmers ploughed up and down.
Central Demolition were awarded the £655,000 contract and are about halfway through the “soft strip” and asbestos removal stage.
The main demolition, due to start around Christmas, will see grabber and pulveriser machines chew down the concrete and steel structure, the stonework being crushed for foundation infill of the V&A.
“It is the biggest swimming pool we have taken down and we have done a lot of planning for the project,” said Jamie Cassells, Central’s site manager.
“The electricity and gas were switched off and the pools were drained. The thousands of gallons of water were flushed into the waste water system under licence from the environment agency, we definitely couldn’t pour it into the Tay.
“The public may not have seen much happening but we have been busy inside the building.
“After Christmas they will see a lot more activity and we are due to finish the whole project in April.”
The last section of the pedestrian overbridge at the Olympia will be removed on Thursday.